I'm Not a Victim
by scoobydoobydude
Summary: Callie is the victim of another horrific crime. Will she be able to come to terms with what has happened to her? Will she be able to cope in a healthy way? Will she accept the help her moms are offering her? **TRIGGER WARNING** Contains sensitive material (self harm, suicide, rape). I'm rating this M because I don't know how graphic it will become and I wan to play it safe.
1. I Don't Trust Him

**So in this story Stef is a new SVU detective, not a uniform cop. Also, if you have been reading my other story,** ** _Not So Nice Guy_** **, I'm really sorry that I haven't been updating it! I really don't know if I am going to be able to finish it or not. It isn't playing out at all how I wanted it too and I'm just really unhappy with it. I'll try my best to finish it, but no promises! Disclaimer: I don't own The Fosters.**

 **Stef's POV**

"I don't care if he signed the papers Lena! He manipulated _our_ daughter so he could get custody. I just don't trust him. I understand that Callie wants to be a part of Sophia's life. It's really good for them to have each other, but I don't think Callie should be spending the night at Robert's. I don't like it." I was beyond frustrated that Lena had agreed to let Callie stay the night with Sophia. "I think we should call her and tell her she needs to come home. I'll go pick her up."

"And what about Sophia? She's going to be brokenhearted that Callie can't stay with her."

"Sophia can stay here! I have no problem with her. She's a really sweet girl and I like her very much. It's her _father_ who pisses me off!" Lena gave me a look that said 'Watch your language', but she also sighed in agreement.

"Fine, but what if Callie doesn't want to come home? She might want to see Robert, you know."

"We talked before she left for work. She was very apprehensive to go, but she agreed for Sophia. I'm going to call her. Hopefully she hasn't left work yet." I walked out of our room and sat down on the swing on the front porch. I dialed Callie and waited for her to answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey Callie, its mom. Listen, I don't want you staying at Robert's. I just don't trust him. Sophia can stay here, but I would like it if you would come home tonight."

I heard her sigh on the other end, clearly frustrated. "I'm almost to the bus stop by their house. I had a really long day at work and I just want to go to sleep. It's really late, can I please just stay here tonight and I'll come home early in the morning?"

"Callie-"

"Stef please! He's probably in bed already and he has to work early tomorrow morning. I most likely won't see him anyway."

It was getting pretty late and I really didn't feel like driving across town to pick her up. And I didn't want her taking the bus home this late either. "Okay, fine. But I want you to text me when you get there and I'll be there at 8:00 am!"

"Thank you! Tell everyone I say goodnight, love you."

"I love you too." I smiled as I hung up the phone. I was finally starting to see what Lena meant when she said Callie might as well be my biological daughter. She seemed to pick up on my mannerisms more and more every single day. I walked back into the house, dreading having to tell Lena that she was right.

 **Lena's POV**

I looked up from my book and saw Stef coming through the doorway with a defeated look on her face. She sighed and sat on the bed by my feet.

"Well?" I probed, even though I already knew what had happened on the phone.

"You were right! She wants to stay there tonight." I gave her a little smirk, claiming my victory. "Oh don't give me that look! She doesn't want to see Robert, she's just very tired."

"Well, I have to take what victories I can." I tried to joke with my wife to lighten the mood, but she clearly wasn't in the mood. "She will be okay for one night, my love."

"I know... I just hate not having her home. I miss her all the time when she is gone. I always feel like she is going to runaway again. Like she will just walk out the door and never come back. Just the thought of it makes my heart physically hurt." Stef quickly pulled her hand to her face and wiped away a single tear that fell down her cheek.

I couldn't find the right words to say so I reached out my arms for her and pulled her to my chest. Stef rarely let anyone see her cry, but when she did, it was hard to get her to stop. I knew how much she loved Callie and the thought of losing her for good scared Stef to death. I rocked her gently as she cried into me. We stayed like that for about twenty minutes until I started to realize that her breaths had become even. I laughed softly at the sight of my wife (who always put on a tough cop exterior) curled up in my arms like one of my children. I was getting ready to move her to the other side of the bed when Mariana came in with the phone.

"Captain Bishop is on the phone for mom. He said its urgent." Mariana quickly crossed the room and handed me the phone.

"Thanks sweetie." I took the phone from Mariana and put it to my ear. "Hey Captain, its Lena. Stef is sleeping. Let me wake her up real quick." I set the phone down on my bedside table and gently shook Stef. "Stef, your boss is on the phone. He needs to talk to you."

"Huh, what? Why is he calling so late?" Stef pushed herself out of my arms and stretched before she took the phone. "What's going on Captain?"

I tried to piece together the conversation from only hearing Stef's side of it.

"What hospital? ... Okay, yeah I'm on my way in five minutes. Is Curry meeting me there? ... Oh, that's too bad. Alright, I'll be there soon."

"What's happening?"

"A girl was assaulted. I have to go take her statement at Sacred Cross. My partner's kid is sick and his wife is out of town so he can't meet me there. This is my first case as an SVU detective and I have to do it solo. Wish me luck!" Stef was flying around the room getting changed out of her pajamas and strapping her badge and gun to her hip. "I'll be back really late so don't wait up for me."

"Okay, good luck babe! I love you." I stood up and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

"Love you more!" Stef squeezed my arms and took off out the door.

 **Please leave me some reviews! I LOVE reading what you think!**


	2. Familiar Voices

**Callie's POV**

After I hung up with Stef, I laid my head back against the window and closed my eyes. Work was absolutely insane today. One of our servers didn't come in, so it was just Daphne and me. I just wanted to close my eyes for a couple minutes. I was almost to my stop, but I was just so tired. I must have been more tired than I realized, because I woke up to the bus driver talking to me.

"End of the line, little darling! You gotta go." He was looking at me through the mirror.

"Umm, how far away am I from Pope Creek? Or Mission Bay?" I looked at my phone but it was dead. Perfect.

"Pope Creek? That's a good forty minute walk from here. And Mission Bay is another twenty beyond that. Good luck." He opened the doors and I stepped off into the crisp night.

This was just perfect. My phone was completely dead and I had no money to use a pay phone. I started walking towards Pope Creek where Robert lives. I had been walking for about fifteen minutes when I started to feel like someone was following me. I turned around but I didn't see anyone. A little further down the road, I got the same feeling again. I pulled my keys from my coat pocket and gripped them tightly in case I had to use them as a weapon. I turned to look again, but before I could do anything, a fist came flying through the air and hit me square on the jaw. I tried to scream, but another hand was clamped over my mouth. My attacker grabbed me up by the waist and carried me into an ally on the left. They threw me to the ground. I didn't even have to look up to know who it was. I would recognize his scent anywhere. Cheap cologne and peppermint gum.

 _Liam._

"Nice to see you, Cal! I thought I made it pretty clear at your school a couple months ago to leave me the hell alone! You never listen, do you? Why did you have to drag me through a _public_ trial? You're such a little bitch!" Liam screamed at me from above. "I guess I'm just going to have to teach you a lesson."

I looked up and saw the same grimace that was on his face two years ago when he came in my room late that night. My throat tightened and my eyes filled with tears. How could this be happening again? Why couldn't I move or scream? Why hadn't I just listened to Stef and gone home! My heart nearly beat out of my chest when I felt his hands on me. He ripped my backpack off of me and chucked it down the ally. Next, he pulled off my coat and starting pulling at my shirt and pants. I tried to fight him, but my body rebelled. He managed to get my shirt off but I started kicking when he made a move for my pants.

"Just like last time, huh?" He smiled at me as he spoke. But, the smile quickly disappeared when I kicked him in the gut. He screamed and fell back a little. I tried to get up, but he was too fast. "Where do you think you're going? We aren't close to being done, dollface." He threw me back to the ground and pulled my shoes off. I layed there absolutely frozen as I felt him unzip my jeans and pull them off. I started to cry when my underwear came off.

When I heard his zipper, I started screaming. "NO! Someone help me! Please!" Before I could get anything else out, he shoved my socks in my mouth to gag me.

"Shut up! Shut _the hell_ up!" He pulled his pants down to his knees and climbed on top of me. I tried to get lost in my mind, but the pain kept pulling me back to reality. His body was heavy and sweaty against mine. His grunts filled the air, masking my whimpers. He collapsed on top of me when he was finished, breathing heavily in my ear.

Liam got off of me and pulled up his jeans and zipped them. I laid on the ground trying to cover myself from his lustful glare. "I know you're just going to go run to your mommies and tell them, so I'm going to have to make sure that doesn't happen."

I tensed my body, preparing for a beating, but nearly threw up when I heard the click of a gun.

"It was really nice knowing you Callie. I sure am going to miss you. Sweet dreams." Liam lowered the gun so it was aimed directly at me. I braced myself, waiting for my world to disappear.

"Hey! What the hell are you doing!" A voice from the entrance of the ally broke the silence that had grown between us. "Get away from her!"

Liam turned and looked towards the voice. He looked back at me and hit me over the head with the end of his gun. He shoved the gun in his coat pocket and took off down the ally. I felt something being layed over me. My vison was extremely blurry but when I looked up I saw a woman standing over me.

"It's okay, you're going to be fine. I'm going to stay right here with you until the ambulance gets here. Can you tell me your name?" Her voice was pounding in my ears.

I tried to shake my head but that just intensified everything. I turned my face to the side and threw up on the ground. A couple minutes later, it was getting really hard to stay awake. I closed my eyes and I heard the woman saying something to me but I couldn't make out the words. Just before I blacked out, I heard sirens in the distance.

 **Stef's POV**

I arrived at the hospital minutes after the ambulance. I walked through the automatic doors and asked a nurse to direct me to the assault victim.

"Oh you just missed her! The doctors took her to get stitched up. They should be done in about an hour and then she'll be moved to the pediatric unit. I can come get you when she is in her room."

"Pediatric unit?! She's a minor?" I was sick to my stomach. What kind of monster assaults a child? "Did she give you her name or age?"

"No, she was unconscious when the paramedics arrived with her and she didn't have any ID. Right now she is Jane Doe. And she looks to be about 16."

My heart dropped to my stomach. Callie is sixteen and Mariana is almost there. I couldn't even think about one of them being hurt like this. Callie! She hadn't called or texted me since I last talked to her. Surely she had gotten to Robert's by now. I pulled out my phone and dialed her, but it went straight to voicemail. My heart started to beat fast. Why is her phone off? She knew better than to turn it off. I was getting ready to call Lena when a voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Detective? The girl is conscious now. If you'd like, you can go talk to her. The doctors got called down to an emergency."

"Oh, thank you." I started walking towards where the nurse had directed me, still angry that Callie had turned off her phone. When I walked in the room, the lights were dimmed and the bed was facing away from me. "Hi there. I'm a detective and I just want to ask you a few questions. Can you tell me your name? My name is-"

"Stef? Is that you?"

My stomach flipped at the familiar voice.


	3. Safety

**I really like writing from Stef and Callie's POV so I think the majority of the story will be written as Callie or Stef. I will do some as other characters but I'm going to focus the story on the two of them and their relationship (because I seriously love it!).**

 **Callie's POV**

I woke up to several doctors and nurses looking down on me. My head was killing me and the rest of my body was aching horribly.

"Nice to see you're awake, my dear! How are you feeling? Sorry, that was probably a dumb question." A young female doctor asked me. I think she was stitching the cut on my head from Liam's gun.

"I feel like sh- crap."

"Well, you did have a pretty rough night. Can you tell us what you remember?"

No, absolutely not! I am not going through this _again_. I soon realized that an awkward silence was growing between us. "No. I don't remember anything."

"Okay, I'm sure it will come back soon. What about your name? Can you tell us that?"

"Sorry, but there is a mass casualty piling up in the ER. An apartment building caught on fire. We need all of you down to triage immediately." An older nurse burst into the room, her voice filled with panic.

"Certainly. Will you tell the detective she can come in now?" The nurse nodded and left with the rest of the doctor's team. "I have to go, but I will be back up as soon as I can. Would it make your head feel better if I dimmed the lights?"

"Yes please." To be honest, I really didn't care if I was in a pitch black room or staring at the sun. It felt as if nothing would help the immense pain building inside of my head.

The doctor smiled and left the room, turning the lights almost completely off before she was gone. I laid there by myself for about ten minutes before I heard the door open.

"Hi there. I'm a detective and I just want to ask you a few questions." A young sounding woman entered the room. Her voice, sounding awfully familiar, pierced my head like a knife. "Can you tell me your name? My name is-"

"Stef? Is that you?" Surely they wouldn't have sent my foster mom to take my statement. It couldn't have been her.

Silence filled the air. I heard footsteps coming towards me. They stopped once they were right behind my bed. I wanted so badly to turn and look at the figure behind me, but my head hurt to much to move.

"Callie? Oh God, please tell me its not you." It was Stef! She walked around to where I could see her. I saw the pain, fear, and anger creep up on her face. Her eyes filled with tears and she took my hand. "What- what happened? Who did this to you?"

"I don't want to talk about it. I just want to go home. Please... just take me home." Now tears were streaming down my face. I wanted nothing more than for Stef to wrap me up in her arms and drive us home.

"Honey you know I can't do that. You need to get your head stitched up and have a full examination to make sure you aren't seriously injured." She sighed and squeezed my hand a little tighter. "And... you need to have a rape kit done."

"What?! No, I don't need a rape kit." My chest tightened and it became very hard to breathe. I couldn't stand the thought of someone violating me twice in one night.

"Callie... you were found almost completely naked. The woman who called the police said she saw the attack from her apartment across the street. She said when she got there, she had just seen the man get off of you, pull up his pants, and pull a gun on you." Her eyes became very sad as she spoke. "I know that it is hard to admit what happened, but the only way we will catch your attacker is through the evidence."

"Can I just take a little time to think about it?"

"Yes, but it needs to be done today. The evidence that is on you can deteriorate very quickly. I have to go call my Captain and mama. But, I will be right back, okay?"

"No! Please don't tell Lena! I don't want anyone else to know what really happened."

"What are we going to say when I bring you home and you're all bruised up? Or when the investigation starts? I know it's embarrassing, but mama will understand. We don't have to tell anyone else, but she needs to know too, alright?"

I sighed but nodded in agreement. I knew it was a long shot, but it was worth a try. Stef smiled sadly at me. She kissed me on the cheek and stepped outside of the room. It felt so good to have her with me. She always made me feel safe even when I felt so out of control. Once I heard the door shut, I broke down completely. Why was this happening _again_? Tears poured down my face. They felt as if they would never stop. I tried to calm my self down, but nothing was working. I looked at an instrument tray to my left and saw a scalpel within reach. Slowly, I made a moved for. I really didn't know what I was going to do with it. Maybe I took it for protection? Or maybe it was in case I couldn't handle the pain anymore. I grabbed my t-shirt that was laying next to me and wrapped it up.

 **Stef's POV**

As soon as the door was closed behind me, I let the tears flow. I couldn't believe that my daughter was raped _again_. She was just starting to heal from what Liam did to her, and now this? She had already been through so much. How much more pain does she have to go through. I wiped my tears and dialed my boss.

"Captain, its Stef. Um, I'm not able to work this case." I nervously chewed on my fingernails, something I was always telling Callie to stop doing. This was my first case as an SVU detective and I couldn't work it.

"Foster, listen. SVU is a very difficult job. I'm sorry that Curry couldn't be there to help you, but I'm sure you can manage for one night. If you can't do this-"

"No, Captain. I can't work it because it is a conflict of interest. The victim... she's my daughter." Tears started flowing again. I tried to sound strong in front of my new boss, but it wasn't working too well.

"Oh my God. Um, I'm so sorry. I'll call someone else from the squad. Is there anyone you'd like to be as primary detective on her case?"

"Yeah, will you send Vaughn? I'm sure Callie would feel more comfortable with a female detective to talk to."

"Sure thing. Again, I'm so sorry. If there is anything I can do, please let me know. You can have a couple weeks off to be with her."

"Thanks Captain. I'll be in with her tomorrow to answer more questions." I hung up the phone and stared at it, dreading the call I had to make to my wife. Before I could dial, her number popped up.

"Lena? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. But, Robert just called. He said that Callie still hasnt' shown up. He drove by her work to see if she was still there, but he said is was closed. I tried calling her, but it went straight to voicemail." I could hear the anger and fear in my wife's voice. I could tell she was trying to mask it, but she wasn't doing a very good job.

"I was actually just getting ready to call you. You need to come to the hospital- Sacred Cross. The victim is Callie."

"What?! Please tell me that she wasn't... she wasn't..."

"I'm so sorry, love. She was attacked and raped in an ally. Her attacker had gun. He hit her over the head with it when someone saw what was happening. He took off before the cops got there."

I heard Lena crying on the other end of the phone. "Okay, I will be there as soon as I can. What should I tell the kids?"

"Oh damn, I didn't even think about the kids. Tell Brandon that Callie got into an accident on her way to Robert's. Say she's okay but not to tell everyone else. We don't need them worrying all night."

"Alright. I'm going to be there in ten minutes. Tell Callie that I love her."

"I will. Bye, love. Oh, two more things. Will you call Robert and explain what is happening? Maybe don't tell him that she was assaulted, just that she was mugged or something. And will you bring her some new clothes? I'm sure she won't want to wear the same clothes home."

"Of course. Bye, I love you."

I hung up the phone and walked back into Callie's room and heard quiet sobbing. I quickly made my way to her bedside and gathered her up in my arms.

"It's going to be okay, my love. Everything is going to be fine."

"No! Nothing is ever going to be fine again. He has completely ruined my life."

"Who has? Do you know who did this to you?"

She tensed up when I mentioned her attacker. She pulled away from me and looked down so I couldn't see her face. "It was... It was Liam. He found me somehow and he did it again." Callie began to sob harder than I had ever seen anyone cry. Her breaths became extremely labored.

"Shhh, we are going to get him this time. Nothing is going to stop us, okay?" I felt her nod against me. I rocked her gently trying to ease her pain.

 **Two hours later**

The doctors finally returned to finish Callie's stitches and her examination. She fell asleep shortly after she revealed her attacker. The doctors gave her some pain medication that would also help her sleep. Lena arrived about the time that Callie fell asleep and was sitting on the bed, holding our daughter with me.

There was a knock at the door. "Hey, sorry it took me so long to get here. I was finishing some paperwork that had to get done tonight. I'm really sorry about this Stef." Detective Vaughn quietly entered the room and whispered once she saw that Callie was sleeping.

"That's alright. Thanks for coming so late Emily." I moved slowly from Callie's death grip and gave my collegue a quick hug.

"Has she agreed to do a rape kit?"

"I was trying to get her to do one. She was pretty against it at first, but I think she started to come around." I turned back to my daughter and gently shook her shoulder. "Callie, baby, I need you to wake up for me. Detective Vaughn is here to ask you some questions."

Callie rolled over so she was on her back and slowly opened her eyes.

"Hi beautiful. Is your head feeling any better?" Lena stroked Callie's hair as she spoke.

"Yeah, but I'm really sore everywhere else."

"Hi Callie, my name is Detective Vaughn, but you can call me Emily. Is it okay if I ask you a few questions?"

"Yeah I guess." Callie looked to Lena and then to me. She furrowed her brow and sunk her head down to her chest.

"Would it make you more comfortable if it was just you and me talking?"

Callie nodded and her cheeks flushed.

"Okay. Stef, Lena, how about you go get some coffee while I talk to Callie okay?" I knew Emily was just doing what was best for Callie, but I wanted nothing more than to stay in that room and hold my daughter while she described one of the most horrific nights of her life.

I looked at Lena and I could tell she was thinking the same thing. She kissed Callie's forehead and walked out of the room with me. Just before the door shut, I heard the detective ask, "Okay, so can you tell me what happened tonight?"


	4. Small Victory

**If anyone has any suggestions for this story PLEASE let me know. I can feel some writer's block coming on and I really want to finish this story. I would love to hear your input!**

 **Callie's POV**

I regretted having Stef leave as soon as the door swung closed. I wanted her there with me to help me get through it. But I couldn't just send Lena out and I definitely couldn't have her in here and listen to what happened. I love Lena, but I hate seeing pain on her face. Especially when I am causing it...

"Callie? Did you hear what I asked?" I was brought back to reality by the calm voice of the young detective next to me.

"No, sorry. What did you say?"

"Can you tell me what happened tonight? I know it is going to be hard, but it will help us put your rapist in prison."

I shuddered at the word 'rapist'. I hated it. I always have, and I now I do even more. "Yeah, uh, I was going to my birth father's house. He lives in Pope Creek. I took the bus from work and I must have fallen asleep. The bus driver made me get off at the last stop which was like a forty minute walk from Robert's, that's my dad, and an hour from home. I was going to call Stef or Robert and have them come get me but my phone was dead. So I just had to walk. After like ten or fifteen minutes I felt like someone was following me. I turned but no one was there. When I turned again, he was right behind me and he punched me in the jaw." I instinctively touched my face and winced immediately. There was a giant bruise already formed on my jaw.

"Ouch, I can see that. I have to document all of your injuries, so I'm going to have to take a picture, okay? You're doing great, keep going." Emily pulled a small digital camera out of her bag and snapped a picture.

"He picked me up and carried me to an ally. He threw me on the ground and started yelling at me." I started to feel panic rising in my chest. "I think I'm going to be sick." I jumped off of the stretcher and ran to the connected bathroom. I made it to the toilet just before I got sick. Tears were streaming down my face once again. I felt completely hopeless.

"You're okay, just try and relax a little. You-"

"Will you go get my mom- uhh, sorry. I meant to say Stef. Can you go get her for me? And _just_ Stef."

"Of course. I'll be right back." Detective Vaughn left and I started to break down again. I laid down on the cool ground and wanted nothing more than to sink into it. My life was completely falling apart. It was ruined forever. I felt like my family would never be able to look at me the same again. Like I would just break if they said the wrong thing. And I think what scared me the most was that I believed it too.

"Oh Callie." Stef's voice broke my thoughts. I couldn't open my eyes to look at her. I couldn't move at all.

"I can't do this. Not again. It's just too hard." I didn't have to look at Stef to know she was crying. I felt her lower herself to the ground. She pulled me to a sitting position and wrapped her arms around me.

"I can't even begin to relate to you right now. I know this must be hard, but I can't imagine just how difficult it actually is. All I know is from what I have experienced at work. The young girls that I have worked with are just like you. They are scared and angry that this has happened. A lot of them don't want to tell us what happened because they are too embarrassed."

"I'm not embarrassed to say what happened. She's... she's going to think I'm disgusting."

"No! Absolutely not. Why in the world would she think that?"

I was shocked at the genuine confusion in Stef's voice. "Because it happened to me twice. By the same guy! She's going to think that I wanted to be with him but then just changed my mind or something like that! She's going to say that I should have just reported it the first time and then this wouldn't have happened."

"Callie, no one is blaming you for this. The only person at fault here is Liam. Please, love, I need to know that you understand what I'm saying." Stef pulled me closer and kissed my forehead.

I sighed and even though I didn't agree with what she was saying, I nodded. "Will you stay with me while I tell her the rest? I don't think I can do this on my own."

"Absolutely. Do you want me to bring mama in too?"

"I don't know... I don't want to hurt her. Not that I _want_ to hurt you, I just feel like you can handle stuff like this better."

"My sweet, sweet love. I so admire you for putting everyone before yourself. But I want to let you in on a little secret. Your mama is a lot stronger than you think. She has been through more than her fair share of pain. No, it's not going to be easy for her to hear what happened, but that isn't because she's weak or fragile. It's because it hurts her so much when one of her babies is in pain. She doesn't have to come in if you don't want her too, but I think it would be good for you to have some extra support."

"Okay, I mean she's going to hear it one way or another, right? And I've made a decision. I will do the rape kit. But I just want you with me for that."

Stef smiled and nodded. "Let's get you back on the bed. I'll go get mama and Detective Vaughn."

 **Stef's POV**

"She's ready to begin again. Lena," I turned my attention to my wife who was sitting in the waiting area looking so broken. "Callie wants us both in there with her."

"Okay, uh, how's she doing?" Lena stood and wiped her tears as she spoke.

"She's... not doing very well. She's scared and broken." I tried my best to go easy on my wife, but I wanted to prepare her for how she was going to see our daughter.

Lena's face crumpled. I quickly made my way to her and pulled her into my arms. I stroked her hair and tried to calm her before we went back to Callie.

"Has Callie made a decision about the rape kit? If she wants to do it, I need to let the nurse know so she can get a room and kit prepared." Detective Vaughn asked.

"Yes, she is going to do it. But can we wait until she is finished with her statement? I don't think she is strong enough to do them at the same time."

"Sure. I'm going to go talk to the nurse. Why don't you go in and get Callie settled. I'll be back in just a couple minutes."

Once Emily was gone I pulled Lena away from my chest and wiped some tears off of her cheeks. "Are you ready to go in?" When she nodded, I took her hand and opened the door.

"Hi baby." Lena let go of me as soon as she saw Callie. She ran to her bedside and pulled her into a tight embrace. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry. Don't you worry. We are going to find whoever did this to you and put him away for a long time."

Callie turned her attention to me. "You didn't tell her, did you?"

"What? Tell me what?"

"Okay, are you ready to start again Callie?" Emily entered the room, stopping Callie before she had chance to speak.

"Sure. But, I don't remember where I was." Callie pulled herself from Lena. I could tell that she didn't want anyone touching her while she described what happened. I gestured for Lena to sit on the other side of Callie. This way, the three of us were making a protective circle around her. Lena and I on either side and Dectective Vaughn at her feet.

"You were just getting ready to talk about the ally. He'd started yelling at you."

"Oh yeah. He was saying how he thought he'd made it clear to stay away from him and his family. He said he had to teach me a lesson."

"Do you know who your attacker is? Those seem like pretty personal threats."

I saw Callie visibly shudder as she prepared to go on. "I do know him. His name is Liam Olmstead." Lena gasped from the other side of the bed and I had to shoot her a look that said 'keep it together!'.

"Okay, and how do you know Liam?"

"My little brother and I used to be fostered by the Olmsteads. He was my foster brother. And... he, uh... He forced me to have sex with him one time while I was living there."

I looked over to my collegue and saw that she was visibly stunned. But, she regained her composure quickly. "I'm very sorry that this happened again, Callie. So after he yelled at you, what happened?"

"He pulled my backpack off and my shirt. But I freaked out when he went for my pants. I started kicking him. He got mad when I got him in the stomach. I tried to run, but he was to fast. He threw me back down and pulled my jeans off. Then... it just happened. He raped me." Callie started crying again. My heart broke into a million pieces. I tried to hold her hand put she pulled away from me. "When he was done he said he knew I was going to tell Stef and Lena what happened and he couldn't let that happen. I thought he was going to beat me, but then I heard a gun. He was going to kill me. Luckily, that woman came. She saved my life."

"Did he use a condom?"

"No." Callie wiped a stray tear off her cheek.

"Okay, you did very good Callie. Can you tell me how you got the cut? Was it obtained during the struggle?"

"No. He got freaked out when the woman started coming towards us. He hit me over the head with the gun and ran in the opposite direction." Emily quickly took pictures of Callie's injury.

"Alright. If that is everything, I'm finished with your statement. A nurse is going to come in and move you to a different room where the rape kit will be performed." Emily stood and walked over to me. "I'll be in touch within a couple days. Call me if you or Callie need anything."

I smiled and waited for her to leave before I spoke again. "You did so good Callie. There is just a little bit more to do tonight and then you can finally get some rest." I could see how exhausted she was. Her eyes were drooping and she yawned what seemed like every thirty seconds.

"Do I get to come home tonight?" She looked at me with pleading eyes, as if the decision was up to me.

"We aren't sure sweetie. How about I go find a doctor and ask?" Lena offered. I knew she was looking for an excuse to get out of the room. She needed to cry and break down. She was so relieved when Callie nodded.

"Callie Jacob?" A nurse entered the room and smiled sweetly at us. When I nodded she came and unlocked the brakes on Callie's bed. Once we started moving, Callie shot her hand out, looking for me. I ran to catch up with her and enclosed her hand in mine. We arrived to the new room very quickly. This room was much larger than the last. There was a bed under big lights and a tray with countless medical instruments on it. Callie tightened her grasp on my hand when she saw them. "You can go behind that screen oover there and change into this." The nurse handed her a new hospital gown. "Place all of your clothes in this bag and your undergarments in this smaller one."

Callie's face flushed severely. "I uh, don't have any. Undergarments I mean. He took them off of me in the ally and threw them."

"That's alright." The nurse smiled. I was so grateful to have a nurse that was caring.

I noticed that Callie looked worried when she grabbed her shirt. "What am I supposed to wear if my clothes are being taken away?"

"Mama brought you a new set of clothes. You can change once we are done in here." Callie looked at her shirt again and furrowed her brow.

"Can I have them now, please?"

"How come, sweets? You don't need them yet."

"Can I just have them please!"

I was shocked when she yelled. I knew she was sad and frustrated, so I didn't push it any further. I handed her the bag that Lena had given me earlier. She took it from me quickly and rushed behind the changing screen. I was a little suspicious at why she needed the clothes so bad right at that moment. I guessed that I would figure it out sooner or later.

When Callie was done changing into the gown, the nurse instructed her to lay down on the bed on her back. I sat next to her and held her hand. She cried as the nurse performed the pelvic exam and begged me to make her stop. They drew her blood and swabbed the inside of her mouth. When they informed her that they had to take full body pictures she latched onto me and wouldn't let go.

"I can't do that. It's too embarrassing. I'm scared." She cried into my shoulder.

"Nothing bad is going to happen. Just close your eyes when they take the pictures. I'll turn around so I don't see anything. It will be over before you know it."

It took several minutes for her to pull herself away from me. I helped her off of the examination table. I turned around and held the gown for her. The room was silent except for the clicks of the camera and Callie's sobs.

"Okay, we are all done here. You did very good, my dear." I handed the gown back to Callie as the nurse packed everything away.

"Get back into bed sweetheart. I have to go talk to mama really quick." I kissed her forehead and followed the nurse out. "Excuse me. Nurse!"

"Can I help you?"

"I was just wondering... she told us that he didn't use a condom. Did you find any... _evidence_?" I swallowed, trying not to cry.

"I'm sorry. I'm not allowed to say. But..." The nurse looked at me and nodded quickly.

Inside, my heart leaped with joy. "Thank you." I smiled back, thankful for the small victory. I saw Lena coming down the hallway and met her halfway.

"The doctor said that we can take her home tonight. She has a small concussion but doesn't need to stay over night. I already filled out the discharge papers. He did say that we need to keep her home from school for at least a week. He recommends more, though."

"Okay, good. Captain Bishop gave me a couple weeks off, so I can stay home with her for as long as she needs. Let's go take our girl home." I smiled and took Lena's hand. When we got to the room, Callie was sleeping. Lena and I looked at each other and smiled.

"Callie, love, can you wake up for me?" Lena gently rubbed her arm and Callie woke immediately. "The doctor said we can take you home."

Callie smiled. "Why don't you go change and then we'll go home." I handed her the bag of new clothes and helped her out of the bed.

Twenty minutes later we were pulling into the driveway with Lena right behind us. Callie was sleeping again. I decided not to wake her. I got out of the car and cradled her in my arms like a baby. She looked so small, like a little child. We made our way upstairs and Lena thought it would be best if Callie spent the night with us in our bed. I agreed with her. I didn't want my child out of reach. We snuggled into bed with Callie in between us.


	5. I Have To Do This

**Thank you so much for all of the reviews! I am really wanting to write more stories (based on The Fosters) but I don't have any solid ideas. I would so appreciate it if you would PM me some ideas. If I am able to make a good story out of it, I will credit you for the idea when it is published. Thanks again for all of the support! -SDD**

 **Callie's POV**

I woke up between Stef and Lena. Well, I guess I should say sandwiched between them. I was snuggled up to Stef and Lena was behind me with her arm draped across the two of us. I looked to the two women who loved me unconditionally and I was so happy in that moment. A smile crept across my face and I snuggled further into Stef. And then I realized why I was in their bed instead of my own. _I was raped last night._ The thought pushed its way into my mind and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get it out. Suddenly, instead of feeling safe I felt like I was being suffocated. I had to get out of that bed. I tried to move slowly so I wouldn't wake Stef or Lena, but they just held me tighter. I pushed away from them, tearing myself from their grasps. I sprung out of the bed and ran into their bathroom, slamming the door and locking it.

"Callie? What's going on, love?" Stef's voice seeped through the door. "Please unlock the door. Just talk to me!"

"Go away! I don't want to talk to you or anyone else!" I sat on the floor and put my head between my knees and covered my ears with my hands. I heard Stef and Lena talking, but their voices were just mumbles to me.

"Callie open this door right now!" My hands couldn't muffle the banging on the bathroom door. I sighed and got up to open the door. Once the door was open and I saw Stef's face, I completely broke down. I sunk to the ground and rested against the door frame crying my eyes out.

"It's just too hard! I can't handle the pain anymore..." I said through sobs. My whole body felt numb. I could barely feel Stef wrap her arms around me.

Stef pulled me close to her and kissed my head several times. She kept whispering that she loved me and that she would do everything in her power to keep me safe. "Let's get you back to bed. Its too early for you to be awake."

I glanced at the clock on the bedside table and saw that it was only six in the morning. Everyone else would soon be getting up and ready for school. I was so grateful that I had to stay home. Stef tucked me in and then joined Lena who had retreated to the bathroom to get ready for the day. I strained my ears to listen, but only caught snippets of their conversation.

"... just so broken. It breaks my heart to see how much she's hurting." Stef said as she sobbed into Lena.

"It's going to break her if he doesn't get convicted. What do you think..." Lena got more quiet as she spoke.

"...everything in my power to put that bastard in prison."

"Language, Stef..."

I laughed at my mama. Even in the midst of something horrible, she still made sure Stef didn't get away with swearing. Just as I was falling deeper into sleep, Lena crawled on the bed and pulled me into her arms.

"I have to go get the rest of the kids up, but I just wanted to say goodbye and that I love you _so_ much." She leaned down and peppered my face with kisses. "I call you at lunch to see how you're doing, okay?"

"That sounds good. I love you too." I smiled up at her and hugged her tightly.

Lena got off of the bed and then went to Stef. They wrapped their arms around each other and just held each other for a couple minutes. After a while, Stef pulled away and looked at Lena so lovingly.

"I love you. Have a good day." Stef smiled as she spoke and gave Lena a kiss on the lips.

"I love you more!"

I suddenly realized how much I craved to be loved. Not just from my sibling or moms, but from a significant other. I desperately wanted to find someone who loved me as much as Stef and Lena loved each other. I used to think that Brandon was that someone, but now I know that I can never be with him. I need a family way more than I need a boyfriend. But, I thought maybe Wyatt could be that someone for me. He really did care about me so much. The thought of being with him for the rest of my life made me feel so warm inside. I'd had other boyfriends before him, but none of them had ever loved me like Wyatt.

Stef's voice pulled me out of my thoughts. "What are you smiling at? You should be sleeping missy!"

"I was just watching you and Lena. I hope can find someone who loves me like you two love each other. I just really don't want Liam to ruin love for me..." My happiness quickly disappeared. Would I ever be able to be loved?

"Oh sweetie. Liam is a cruel, evil man. He should not ruin love for you. It's going to be hard to let yourself be loved by someone because of what he did to you. Victims often think that no one will love them because they will be thought of as... broken and unfixable. Which you are not! You are not broken. You definitely have your demons to deal with, but that doesn't mean that you will feel this way forever. Do you hear what I'm trying to say, love?

"I do. I'm just scared I guess. I'm scared that he will walk free. I'm scared that he is going to do it again. I don't want to feel this way anymore." I looked up at Stef and she had tears in her eyes. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you sad."

"You have nothing to be sorry for. And you didn't make me sad. This situation makes me sad and angry. My tears are not your fault."

I smiled at her even though I did feel guilty. "Will you... will you lay with me for a little bit?"

Stef returned the smile. "Of course I will. But if you keep kicking me like you did last night I'm going to have to arrest you for assaulting a police officer!"

"Ha! Nice try! I seem to remember it as you attacking my feet!"

"You and Brandon both!" She laughed and got under the covers.

I snuggled up next to her and breathed in her scent. "Thank you."

"For what, love?"

"For everything. For taking Jude and me in. For loving me and making me feel safer than I ever have in my entire life. For... being my mom when my birth mom couldn't." The thought of my mom made me want to cry. Ever since Liam attacked me, I wanted nothing more to hug her and cry into her. But having Stef there made it feel like she was really with me.

"I love you so much Callie. Never ever forget that." Stef kissed my forehead and pulled me closer to her. Before I knew it sleep had taken me over.

 **Stef's POV**

Once Callie had been sleeping for a few hours I went downstairs to call Detective Vaughn to see how the case was coming.

"Hey Stef, I was just getting ready to call you!" Emily sounded like she was in a very good mood, which I took as a good sign. "I have some wonderful news for you and Callie!"

"Well don't leave me hanging! What's going on?" My heart was beating out of my chest and I couldn't stop the smile that had taken over my face.

"We got a hit off of the DNA we got from Callie. It's a perfect match to Liam Olmstead. He was arrested for public vagrancy when he was 19, so his DNA was in the system. Also, we found the gun he hit her with in a dumpster a couple blocks from the crime scene. His prints and her blood are all over it. We got him Stef! This bastard is going away for a long time!"

"Emily this is so fantastic! I can't believe this is happening! Callie is going to be so happy when I tell her." I was nearly dancing around the kitchen. Liam was going to get the punishment he deserved!

"We still need her to come in for a line-up though. I know you don't want to put her through seeing her attacker again, but it will just put one more nail in his coffin."

"Please don't make her do that. She is barely holding it together as it is. You already have his DNA, fingerprints on the weapon, and a witness corroborated her story. Is a line up really necessary?"

"I'm sorry Stef but, she really needs to come in. And his lawyer wants it done today. He says that he wants this outrageous allegation over with and put behind his client as soon as possible. And you know that the sooner she IDs him, the quicker we put those silver bracelets on his wrists."

I sighed and rubbed my head. "Okay. We will be there in a few hours. It's going to take some convincing to get her there. But, thanks again for everything Emily. I really appreciate this."

"Anytime, Stef. See you soon."

I sat down at the kitchen table and dreaded having to tell Callie that she had to see Liam again.

"This is going to kill her..." I thought aloud to myself.

"What is?" I spun around and saw Callie standing on the stairs by the kitchen.

"Why are you out of bed, love? You need your rest." I got up and tried to send her upstairs, but she avoided my grasp.

"I can't sleep. Every time I close my eyes... he's on top of me." She collapsed on to a stool and rested her head on the table.

A huge sigh erupted from me. I sat down next to her and ran my fingers through her hair. "I have some good news for you..." Callie's eyes lit up. "And some bad." The light in her eyes immediately vanished and she retracted away from my touch.

"Start with the good news please." There was terror in her eyes.

"The DNA we got from you was a perfect match to Liam. His DNA was in the system from a minor crime he committed a few years ago. Also, they found the gun. His prints are all over it along with your blood. The woman who stopped him from..." I choked on my words.

"Killing me. You can say it Stef." Her voice sounded so... dead. There was no emotion in it. My heart broke for her.

"Sorry. The woman who stopped him from killing you is coming forward as an eye witness and she is backing up everything you said. She saw what happened from her apartment window, so they have deemed her as a credible witness. We got him Callie!"

"You're joking, right?! This is so great! I can't believe this!" Callie shot up off her stool and barreled into me. I pulled her into a hug and held her for a few moments. I was so happy to see her so full of joy. But, she recoiled and took her place back on the chair. When she spoke, her voice was barely a whisper. "Wait... what's the bad news?"

"Even though they have all of this evidence, you have to go in for a line up. There will be five to six men in an interrogation room. All you have to do is pick out Liam."

"Will he be able to see me?" Tears brimmed in her eyes.

"No. There is a two way mirror separating the room you will be in from the interrogation room. For you, it will be like looking through a piece of glass. But for the men in the other room, they will be looking at a mirror. He won't be able to see or talk to you."

"I don't think I can do that. I already see him in my thoughts. I can't handle seeing him in real life, too."

"I'm going to be right there with you. I won't leave your side for a second, okay?" I squeezed her hand trying to reassure her.

She buried her face in to her arm and let out a few sobs. A couple minutes later, she sat up and stared at me with a look of such determination on her face. "If he gets away with this, he'll come back for me and he won't waste anytime with the gun. And then he'll just hurt more girls. I have to do this."

I wanted to argue with her and tell her that I would never let him hurt her ever again, but I decided to choose my battles. "Good girl. Why don't you go upstairs and take a shower. I'll get some lunch going for us."

She nodded and took off up the stairs.

 **One hour later**

Callie came down the stairs dressed in jeans and a baggy sweater. Her hair looked curlier than ever and it was hanging in her face. She had a light touch of make-up on. She looked so beautiful.

"Don't you think you are going to be hot in that sweater?" The thought of putting on a sweater as heavy as hers and walking out into the heat of the day was enough to make me start sweating.

"I just want to be comfortable." She said with a weak smile.

I smiled back and thought for a second. I guessed that she was probably wearing that because she felt protected, like he couldn't hurt her in something that hid her body so well. I walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. "He can't hurt you anymore, love. We got him." I kissed the top of her head and sat her down to eat.

When we were finished eating our lunch, we loaded into my SUV and drove to the precinct. I noticed that Callie sunk further and further into her seat the closer we got. I nearly had to carry her into the building.

"Stef, Callie! I'm so glad you made it in." Emily met us at the elevator and walked us into the squad room. "Are you ready, Callie?"

"No, but if we don't do this now I'll never do it." She smirked slightly and moved closer to me.

"Alrighty then! Follow me." We walked a short distance to the viewing room. "Okay, six men are going to walk into that room. They will each be holding a sign numbered 1-6. All you have to do is pick the man you recognize as Liam Olmstead."

Callie nodded and walked up to the window. I stood next to her and took her hand. I looked over at her and saw that she wasn't looking into the room. Instead, her eyes were fixed on our hands. When I looked back up, the men were filing in one by one.

"Okay Callie. They're all in there now." Detective Vaughn spoke from behind us.

Callie breathed out weakly and looked through the window. Her hand tightened around mine immediately.

"He's looking right at me." She whispered.

I looked at Liam and it seemed as though she was right. Liam seemed to be staring directly where Callie was standing.

"Callie, do you recognize any of these men?"

"He's there. Number five. That's Liam." She turned and collapsed into me.

"Okay, very good. Now, I have to ask you this: Where do you recognize number five from?"

"He raped me... twice."


	6. Not A Monster

**There is some legal stuff in here and obviously I am not a lawyer, so sorry if some of it is flawed. Enjoy!**

 **Stef's POV**

I held my daughter as she sobbed into me. I was so proud of her. She'd survived hell for a second time and had kept it together relatively well.

"Very good Callie." Detective Vaughn gave me reassuring smile and squeezed Callie's shoulder. "Thank you gentlemen. Number five, stay where you are." She spoke through the intercom that led into the interrogation room and then turned her attention back to us. "Alright, you are all set to go. Thanks again for coming in. I know this wasn't easy for you."

Callie pulled herself away from me, but didn't leave my side. "So, what happens now?" She wiped away her tears with her free hand as she spoke.

"We are going to interrogate him some more to see if we will get a confession out of him. And then he will go to Central Booking. He'll be arraigned in the morning and then a trial date will be set."

"You won't." Callie said, barely above a whisper. Emily and I looked at Callie confused. She sighed heavily. "You won't get a confession out of him. I know him. He'll deny this until the day he dies."

"Well, we don't need his confession to get a conviction. He is going away, Callie." I tried my best to reassure her, but I could tell it wasn't working very well. "Let's get you home, okay?"

Callie nodded and smiled. She looked completely exhausted.

"Detective Vaughn?" One of the other detectives working Callie's case stepped into the room. "Ms. Jacob's statement wasn't signed the other night at the hospital and there is some more paperwork that she and Detective Foster need to fill out."

"Crap. I'm sorry Stef. Do you think you guys can stay for a little bit and do the paperwork?" Detective Vaughn looked at me pleadingly. I knew that this needed to be done, but I also needed to get Callie home to rest. "If you'd like, Callie can go upstairs and rest on the couch while you fill everything out."

"What do you think, love? Are you okay with that?"

"I really don't care. I just want to be done for today." The deadness in her voice from earlier today had returned.

I smiled down at her and led her out of the room and up the stairs to the couch. "I'll be right downstairs if you need me. Try and get some rest." I kissed the top of her head and tucked her in with a warm blanket.

"Stef?"

"What do you need, love?"

She looked unsure of herself and her cheeks flushed. "Would you mind... calling Robert? I don't think it's fair that he doesn't know what really happened. I think he should know."

"Callie... are you sure you want to do that?" I didn't like the idea of having Robert around for this. I figured it would make her extremely uncomfortable.

"Can you imagine not knowing? What if Robert had found out first and he didn't tell you everything? You would be pissed."

I didn't want to admit it, but she was right. "Okay, I'll go call him. What do you want me to tell him?"

Her answer was immediate. "The truth."

I smiled at my beautiful daughter and made my way to my desk. There were mountains of paperwork all over it. I realized they weren't only from Callie's case, but also the final paperwork from my transfer to the Special Victims Unit. I knew I was going to be here a long time. I called Lena first and explained what was happening. I told her that Callie was doing as well as could be expected and that we would be here late. Once I hung up I dialed Robert. I silently hoped he wouldn't pick up.

"Stef! Oh I'm so glad you called. How's Callie? Did they find the guy who mugged her?" His voice was frantic and filled with worry.

"Listen Robert, there is something I need to tell you. This isn't going to be easy for you to hear."

"Oh God. Is she okay? What happened?" Hearing how much this upset Robert made me respect him a little bit more.

"Callie wasn't mugged the other night. It's actually much worse than that. She missed her stop and started walking to your house. One of her previous foster brothers who has hurt her before pulled her into an ally and... raped her. I'm so sorry that we didn't tell you the truth earlier. We just didn't think she was ready to have everyone know. Her siblings don't even know what really happened."

The other end of the call was dead silent.

"Robert? Are you still there?" I checked to see if I'd lost the call but I had perfect service. "Robert?"

"Sorry, I'm here. I can't... I can't believe this. What can I do? I can provide legal support if necessary. I'll get the best prosecution attorney to put that sick son-of-a-bitch in prison for the rest of his miserable life." I could tell he was crying.

"Thank you Robert, that is very kind of you. I think what Callie needs right now is support and comfort more than anything. I bet she would like to see you. We are at the precinct right now. If you'd like, you can come by and visit with her."

"I'll be there within an hour. Thank you for telling me Stef. Don't worry. I'm going to take care of whatever Callie needs." The line went dead and a smile spread across my face. Maybe Robert wasn't as bad as I thought. I decided that I should let Callie know that her father would be coming by.

When I reached the top of the stairs, I wasn't surprised to see Callie wide awake. She turned and looked at me and slightly rolled her eyes.

"I know, I know. You should be sleeping Callie!" She tried to imitate my voice. "I can't!"

"It's okay. You will be able to eventually. I actually didn't come up here to lecture you on your sleeping habits. I called Robert and he wants to come by and see you. He said he'll be here within an hour but if you don't want him to come I can call and cancel."

"No that's alright. It will be nice to see him." She smiled at me and yawned.

"Close your eyes and rest. Even if you don't fall asleep it will be better than worrying all day."

"Okay. I... love you."

"I love you too, sweetheart."

 **One hour later**

"Excuse me! Can you direct me to Detective Foster? Please, its urgent!" I heard Robert's voice coming from towards the elevators. I walked around the corner and saw him pleading with a young uniform cop.

"Hey Robert. Follow me." I smiled sympathetically at him. His face was plastered with pain.

"How is she doing? Where is she? Have they arrested this guy yet?" Robert was spitting questions out at me at a hundred miles an hour.

"Whoa, slow down for a second. Callie is doing the best she can. She is upstairs in the break room sleeping. And yes, they have arrested Liam. They are interrogating him right now. Do you want to go up and see her?"

"Yes, please! I'm sorry. I just can't wrap my mind around this. Oh and I didn't tell Jill and Sophia. I figured that wasn't my place to spill Callie's secrets." We walked slowly towards the stairs. How did I ever think this man was a monster? He truly does have a huge heart.

"Thank you for that. Go on up these stairs. She is laying on the couch. She's supposed to be sleeping but I bet she is still awake."

Robert smiled and nodded and slowly climbed the stairs. I wanted to go up with him, but I had mountains of paperwork to finish.

 **Robert's POV**

I had to force my legs to carry me up the stairs. I didn't know what condition I would find Callie in and I was terrified that I would break down right in front of her. And I couldn't help but think that this was my fault. I had offered to pick her up from work and drive her to my house, but she said she was fine taking the bus. I should have insisted on picking her up...

By the time this thought entered my mind I was at the top of the stairs and I saw my oldest daughter resting not-so-peacefully on an old couch. I took three long strides to her and crouched down on the floor. Her hand was hanging off the side of her make-shift bed and I grabbed it and held it in mine.

"Oh Callie. I'm so sorry." I gently kissed her hand. I swiped her curly hair out of her face and gasped at what it revealed. A large portion of her face was covered in a purplish-blue bruise. There was also a deep gash that had been stitched up on her forehead that disappeared into her hair. I couldn't hold the tears in any longer. I sat on the floor holding my battered daughter's hand and cried like a child.

"Robert?" A weak voice from behind be said.

"Callie! Did I wake you? I'm sorry..."

"No its okay. I wasn't sleeping that well anyway." She sat up and rubbed her head. "I'm really glad that you came."

"Of course! I'm going to be here for anything you need. I talked to a friend of mine at the District Attorney's office and he said that he would be more than happy to take this case. He graduated top of his class at Harvard. He's really good." I smiled weakly as I tried to reassure my daughter that this monster wasn't going to get away with this.

"You didn't have to do that..." She looked down at her hands. "Sorry. I mean thank you. That was really nice of you." She rubbed her head again and furrowed her brow.

"Is your head hurting you?" I saw the pain on her face and wanted nothing more than to take it away.

"Yeah... um its from the cut. The doctors gave me some pain medicine but I can only take so many a day. They said it will hurt for a few days."

"Did he do that to you?"

"Yeah." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"You don't have to tell me what happened." I figured it would be embarrassing for her.

"No its okay. After Liam was... done, he said that he couldn't let me tell my moms. I thought he was just going to hit me or something. But he pulled out a gun. He was going to shoot me, but a woman stopped him. He hit me with the gun and ran away." She said this like she was reading it from a textbook: emotionless.

I had too bite my knuckles to stop myself from screaming. How could someone hurt someone as wonderful as Callie? Sure she had her issues, but what teenager doesn't? She was so special and so beautiful. I hated this person who made my daughter so broken.

"You should lay back down and try to sleep. It will make your head feel better. I'll go find you some water and aspirin." I helped her lay back down and kissed her forehead. "I'll be right back."

"Thanks." She smiled at me and rolled over to face the back of the couch.

I walked back downstairs and found Stef at her desk buried in papers.

"Hey Stef, can I get some water and aspirin for Callie? Her head is hurting pretty bad."

"Oh yeah, sure. Here," She handed me a bottle of prescription pills. "She can have one of these now. There is a water cooler down that hallway."

"Thanks Stef. Oh I talked to my lawyer and he had these drawn up." I pulled three envelopes out of my jacket. "They're restraining orders. One is for your family and house, the other is for Callie's school, and the last is for my family and house. If he comes within 1,000 feet of any of us or these places he will be arrested." I handed her the restraining orders for her house and the school. She took them slowly and looked up at me with tears in her eyes. Before I knew it, Stef had jumped out of her chair and bear hugged me.

"Thank you so much Robert! I can't even begin to explain how much this means to us." She was crying as she spoke.

I smiled and hugged her back. "I just want all of you to be safe wherever you might be. If, God forbid, he gets away with this I don't want there to be any chance of him retaliating against any of you."

"I got tears all over your suit." Stef laughed and pulled away from me. It was true. There was a big wet spot on my right shoulder.

I laughed too. "That's no big deal, really. I better go give Callie her medicine."

I walked away from Stef and went to go get the water. As I stood filling a cup for Callie, myself, and Stef I saw two detectives walk out of an interrogation room with a young man in handcuffs.

"This is Liam Olmstead. Put him in the cage until the van for transport arrives." A female detective said to a uniform cop.

"I'm sorry. Did you say Liam Olmstead?" I asked the woman. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and my heart began to beat faster. "From the Callie Jacob case?" I hoped, for this man's sake, that I was wrong.

"What's that little bitch saying about me now?" The buff blonde shot me a glare.

I couldn't hold my anger in any longer. I threw the cup of water that I was holding on the ground and lunged.

"You sick bastard! You raped my daughter!" I punched him in the face once before cops hauled me off of him. "You are going to rot in hell! Do you hear me?!"

As the police pulled me further away from Liam, I looked up and saw Callie standing at the railing of the balcony. Her face was plastered with fear.


	7. Truth

**Callie's POV**

I was nearly asleep when I heard screaming from downstairs. Life was getting excruciatingly boring upstairs, so I decided to check out what was happening. But what I saw made me nearly physically ill.

"You sick bastard!" You raped my daughter!" Robert lunged into the air and attacked Liam. He only got one punch in before the cops dragged him away, but it was a really good punch. As soon as I saw my birth dad's fist hit Liam's face, I went numb. Robert had made me feel so safe, and then he did that! I was scared of him. As the cops were pulling him further away from Liam he looked up directly at me. His eyes were wild, full of fear and anger. But they softened when they met mine.

I retreated back to the couch and curled into a ball. My head was splitting and I wanted nothing more than to go home.

Stef came upstairs and sat on the couch with me. She wrapped me in her arms and rocked me slowly.

"I just want to go home. Can we please go?" Tears were streaming down my face creating a wet patch on Stef's shirt.

"Yes, my love. I'll finish the rest of the paperwork later." She helped me stand and we walked slowly down to the car. She buckled me in and kissed my cheek. "Take this." She handed me one of my pain pills and a bottle of water. I eagerly accepted.

By the time we got home my headache had resolved to a very dull throb. Stef came around to get me out of the car.

"I can walk." I protested as she tried to pick me up out of the car.

"Okay, why don't you go to bed. That pill is going to help you sleep."

She was right. I was already feeling tired. I barely made it to my bed before I collapsed. I was so happy to be in my own bed. My siblings still had a few more hours at school, so I didn't have to worry about anyone fighting on the landing or Mariana telling me all about her day. I snuggled up under my covers and I was almost asleep when I saw his face. He was following me around school, the mall, and home. I shot up out of my bed and ran to the bathroom.

"You're safe. Liam is in jail. He can't get to you." I repeated this over and over to myself out loud. Even if he couldn't get to me physically, he had already gotten to me mentally. The pain was becoming unbearable. I didn't want to go to Stef or Lena. I felt like we went in a vicious cycle. I would get hurt or upset about something and they would try and get me to talk to them. Every time I would refuse until Stef broke down my walls.

Not this time I thought. I walked back into my room and grabbed the bag Lena brought me when I was in the hospital. I ran to the bathroom and locked all of the doors. Sitting down on the closed toilet, I pulled out my weapon of choice.

The scalpel.

I held it up to my face so I could see it more closely. The blade was so thin yet so sharp. I ran my finger over it lightly and watched as a thin line of blood appeared. It was amazing; it didn't hurt at all.

I smiled at this thing in my hand. I'd never hurt myself before. Well, not intentionally. I used to step in front of drunk foster fathers to prevent Jude from getting beat. But this was different. I was going to be causing my own pain. I slipped off my jeans and held the knife to my thigh. Getting ready to slice, Stef knocked on the door.

"Callie? Are you in there?"

"Uh, yeah! Just a second!" I quickly stashed the scalpel in my make-up bag and pulled my jeans back on. I opened the door that led to my shared bedroom with my sister and saw Stef standing there worried. "What's up?"

"I just came up to check on you and I saw that you weren't in your bed. I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine. I was just going to take off my make-up. My mascara is making my eyes itch." I lied through my teeth.

"Okay. Let me know if you need anything, yes?" I nodded at her. "Oh, I was going to ask you something. Your siblings are worried sick about you. Mama told me to ask you if you wanted us to tell them what happened."

My stomach flipped. I completely forgot that they didn't know what happened. "You can tell them. I mean, they would have found out eventually, right? But, I don't want to be there when you do. I'm tired of listening to my own attack."

"That sounds reasonable. We'll tell them when they get home. Well, wash up and lay down. You-"

"Need your rest." I finished for her as I smirked. "I know! I'll be in bed in ten minutes. Promise!"

Stef stuck her tongue out at me and walked out of my room. I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding. I locked the door again and grabbed my make-up bag. Again, I slipped off my jeans and held the scalpel next to my skin.

Just do it already. I closed my eyes and cut into my outer thigh. I had to check to see if I even cut skin. I felt nothing, but I definitely broke through. Blood was dripping off of my leg and pooling on the floor. I cut two more marks into my leg and then pressed toilet paper to my wounds. I waited until the bleeding slowed and then I wrapped it in gauze from the first aid kit.

I cleaned up the floor and caught my reflection in the mirror when I stood up. Even though I looked beat too hell (which I was), my eyes seemed like a little light had found its way in. The physical pain in my leg relieved my emotional pain. I smiled at myself and for once it wasn't forced.

I got back into bed after I changed into sweats and pulled the covers up over my face. I looked at the clock. It read 1:15. My siblings would soon be home and then Stef and Lena would tell them the truth of what happened the other night. I closed my eyes and I was finally able to sleep.

The slamming of the door woke me up from my dreamless sleep. Voices filled the air. I checked the clock again and it was 3:45. My brother's and sister were home. I pulled back the covers and quietly crept into the hallway. I sat at the top of the stairs and listened.

"Hello my babies! How was school?" Stef's cheerful voice rang in my ears.

"Really mom? It was school! It freaking sucked."

"Jesus, watch it." Lena scolded.

"Before you all run off, we need to talk to you guys. Everyone take a seat." Stef's voice changed from joking to serious and my chest tightened.

"Is this about Callie?" I almost cried when I heard Jude talk.

"Yes, love, it is. We told you the other night that Callie got mugged on her way to Robert's. That isn't the whole truth."

I couldn't listen anymore. I ran to the bathroom and pulled out the blade. I rolled my sweat pants up as far as they would go and let the knife work it's magic.

 **Stef's POV**

I looked at my stunned children as they sat before me. Jesus was red with anger, Brandon looked like he was going to puke, Mariana was crying, and Jude was blank.

"So what happens now? They are sending him to prison, right?" Brandon was the first to speak. His eyes welled with tears, but he quickly blinked them away.

"Liam has been arrested and charges have been filed. There is going to be a trial, but he will only go to prison if he gets convicted." I didn't even realize I was crying as I spoke.

"If? What do you mean if there is a conviction?!" Jesus jumped out of his seat and looked around the room angerly.

"Jesus, calm down. Callie is right upstairs, so please keep your voice lowered. Yes, Liam will only go to prison if there is a conviction. But, we have so much evidence against him that this is basically a home run." Lena said.

"I can't believe this. Hasn't he hurt her enough already?" Mariana wiped her tears and leaned into Jesus. "What can we do for her?"

"Just be there for her. She is going to be... different for awhile. She is hurting really bad. Not just physically, emotionally too. Mariana, you're going to need to be extra nice to her. Make sure you are available for her to talk to you if she needs to. She's more likely to go to you than any of us." I didn't want to down-play how much Callie was hurting but I also didn't want to scare my other kids.

"Why me? Wouldn't she go to you guys first?"

"Not necessarily. Callie will feel most comfortable with you. She will probably feel too embarrassed to go to anyone else."

Mariana smiled and nodded. I looked to Jude who still had a blank expression on his face.

"Jude, love, are you okay?"

He looked up at me and got up off the couch. "I have homework." He didn't stop when he answered me. He simply picked up his bookbag from the foyer and went up to his room.

"I'll talk to him later." Lena whispered to me. "Okay, well why don't you all go get started on your homework. Dinner will be ready in about an hour."

The rest of my children nodded and silently went to their rooms.

"Did they take it as well as you expected?"

"Mariana and Brandon reacted as I thought they would, but Jesus and Jude surprised me." I answered truthfully.

"What do you mean?"

"I thought Jude would be a wreck. I did not expect him to be so... emotionless. Hopefully he doesn't stop talking again. And Jesus... I don't really know what I expected from him. I guess I thought he would have reacted more like Jude. But he got so angry!"

"He's very protective over his family." Lena stated this like I was ignorant for not realizing it.

"Yes, I am very well aware of that, love. Its just that he and Callie really don't have a relationship. I mean, they've interacted a little since she and Jude got here but that's the extent of it. I bet they don't even know each other's middle names."

"We should do something about that. They're going to officially be brother and sister pretty soon. Shouldn't they have a better relationship than that?"

"Yeah. Maybe we can send them to the store together or have them on the same chore schedule."

"Mariana would love that. Those two are always fighting when they are doing chores." Lena laughed a little and kissed my cheek. "I'm going to go talk to Jude."

"Yeah, I should go check on Callie."

Once I reached my daughters room, I noticed that Callie wasn't in her bed like she was supposed to be. "Hey Miss Thing. Where's your sister?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure. She wasn't in here when I came up. Maybe she's talking to Jude."

I smiled at my daughter and made my way to Jesus and Jude's room.

"Hey boys, have you seen Callie?" Jude was sitting on his bed facing away from Lena and Jesus was at his desk doing homework.

"Nope. I think she's in the bathroom. When we came up Brandon tried to open the door but it was locked so he went downstairs." Jesus answered, not even turning to look at me.

'Great, now I'm just going in circles!' I thought to myself as I turned around to check the kids' bathroom. I went through Mariana and Callie's room and knocked gently. "Callie? Are you in there love?"

No answer.

"Callie, I need you to come unlock the door."

Silence.

"What's going on?" Mariana questioned from her bed.

"Callie locked herself in the bathroom. I know you're in there Callie! If you don't open this door I'm going to get the key and unlock it myself."

Again, there was no answer. Slightly annoyed, I went to my own room and got the key from the dresser.

"I'm giving you one more chance to let me in!" I wasn't surprised when I was met with complete silence. I sighed and unlocked the door.

My heart sunk to the floor at the sight before me. "Oh, Callie! What have you done?" I ran to my daughter who was bleeding on the floor. "Mariana go get mama!" I cried.

"What happened? Oh my God!" Mariana stood frozen in the doorway.

"Mariana go now!" I switched to cop mode. Mariana scrambled to get Lena and I applied pressure to Callie's leg. I looked down at her and she was blank, just like Jude was earlier.

"Just let me go." She turned her face so I couldn't see it.

"No, sweetie. You're going to be okay. Just hang in there."

"Stef? What's so urgent?" Lena came into the bathroom and gasped when she saw Callie in my arms.

"Go call an ambulance. She's lost a lot of blood."

 **Uh oh! What do you think is going to happen with Jude? Is Callie going to be okay? I know the story is going kind of slow but I promise it will pick up here pretty soon!**


	8. Only Way To Deal With The Pain

**Jude's POV**

This day has been so confusing. Connor and I decided to come out at school together. It was... good and bad. Almost everyone was really happy for us. They said we were so brave for doing this. But, I don't really understand that. Why are we brave for being who we are? Anyway, even though most people accepted our relationship, there were still jerks like Blake who kept calling us faggots or queers. I tried not to let Connor see how much it hurt, but he can see right through me. He told me not to worry about it and that he would take care of it. But, other than that, the rest of the school day was really good. I got a good grade on my math test and Connor's dad said he can stay with me this weekend. That's a huge step for him because he is just now starting to accept that Connor and me are dating. I rode home with my siblings and mama and I was so happy. Then when we got home everything changed. Moms sat us down and told us they had something to tell us about Callie. I ignored everything they said after they mentioned Liam. I didn't have to hear it to know what happened. Mama tried to talk to me about it but then Mariana came in and told her that mom needed her and that something was wrong with Callie. They called an ambulance and took her away. I think she tried to kill herself. It wouldn't be the first time...

 **Callie's POV**

After I made the last cut, everything started to get hazey. Black spots started appearing in my vision and I got really cold. Blood was pouring out of my leg. But I didn't care. I wanted to die. Stef was yelling through the door. I couldn't understand what she was saying. She must have used the key from her room to open the door. She dropped it when the door opened. She ran to me and started applying pressure to my leg. She yelled something to Mariana. I tried to push her hands away but I was too weak.

"Just let me go." I turned away from her. I didn't want to see the pain on her face.

"No, sweetie. You're going to be okay. Just hang in there." She kissed my cheek and I felt a tear drop fall onto my face.

There was more yelling and then everything went black.

A lot of time must have passed because I woke up in the hospital. There were doctors and nurses all around me. I saw Stef standing in the corner of the room crying. The pain hit me then.

"No! Oh God, please make it stop!" I tried to sit up, but strong hands held me down. "Just let me die! Stop touching me!" I fought the hands as hard as I could.

"Stef! Come over here and talk to her. She needs to see a familiar face." A voice said. I looked around but I couldn't see who it came from.

"Callie, love, just lay down and let the doctors fix your leg. It will stop hurting once they're done." Stef smoothed my hair and wiped my tears. Her's fell on my face.

"I don't want them to fix it! I want to die!"

"Give her some damn medicine for the pain!" Stef screamed at the doctors.

"We're going to put her under. Callie, just close you eyes and relax. You will feel much better when you wake up."

"Stef... Stef!" I shot my hand out looking for her.

"I'm here love! What do you need?"

It was getting hard to stay awake. "Tell Jude I love him. I'm so sorry. I love you mo-" Everything went black again.

 **Stef's POV**

Callie tried to call me mom before she went under the anesthesia. I waited so long to here that from her, but I didn't want it to be under these circumstances. Especially not when she thought she was dying/wanted to die. Hearing her say she wanted to die shattered my heart into a million pieces. My sweet daughter was in so much pain that the only way she thought to deal with it was to slice her leg open until she bled to death.

"Your daughter is going to be okay. She cut pretty deep and she's lost a lot of blood but we will give her a transfusion. She'll make a full physical recovery. These cuts will definitely leave scars, but nothing to nasty." The doctor who was in charge of Callie's care reassured me.

"Okay, thank you. Will we be able to take her home when she wakes up?"

"I'm sorry. We have to put Callie on a 72 hour psych hold. It's required in attempted suicide cases. She will have a private room in the pediatric wing. She'll have a daily therapy session with one of our psychiatrists. If the doctor feels she is safe enough to go home in three days, she will be released to your care then."

"Okay, umm I have to go talk to my family. How much longer will you be in here?"

"We should be done stitching her up in about an hour. I can have a nurse come get you when she is transferred to her room."

I smiled and nodded as I left the room. The walk to the waiting room seemed like it lasted an eternity.

"Is she dead?" Jude jumped out of Mariana's arms and ran into mine.

"No, love. Callie is going to be fine. She's going to need to stay at the hospital for a couple days but she should be home by Thursday." I hugged my youngest. I felt his tears soak into my shirt.

"Can we see her?"

"Not yet, Brandon. Mama and I will go see her when she gets to her room first. If we think she is okay for visitors we'll bring you in two at a time." Lena rubbed his back. I could tell he'd been crying.

"Why did she do this?" Jesus questioned.

"What do you think, Jesus?! She was raped again! Why do you have to be such an idiot?!" Jude ripped himself from me and quickly jumped to his sister's defense. He took a couple strides towards Jesus but Brandon stopped him.

"Jude! Walk away. Now!" Brandon pulled him away and down the hallway.

Lena made a move for them but I stopped her. "Let Brandon talk to him. They'll be okay."

"He didn't mean that Jesus. He's just..." Lena was at a loss for words.

"Angry, confused, hurt. I know he didn't mean it. It was kind of a stupid question anyway."

"It wasn't stupid. I'm guessing Callie did this because she thought there was no other way to make the pain stop." I sat in between my twins and held them in my arms.

 **Brandon's POV**

I yanked Jude away from Jesus and basically carried him down the hallway. I was completely shocked when he stopped and fell into my arms.

"I can't lose her. She's all I've ever had." I sank into a chair and he crawled onto my lap.

"Hey, you aren't going to lose her. Mom said that she is going to be fine." I rocked my little brother until he stopped crying.

"I don't mean physically lose her. I mean emotionally. She's going to be different again..."

"What does that mean? How is she going to be different?" I was totally confused.

"The first time Liam hurt her, she cut herself off emotionally. Nothing seemed to phase her. And then I started noticing little cuts on her fingers or her hands. I didn't really think anything of it until she walked into my room with a bottle of pills and begged me to take them from her." He wiped his tears and continued. "Before Liam, Callie was... happy. She would laugh all the time, even when we were in the crappiest foster homes. Don't tell mama I said crappiest."

I laughed a little. "Don't worry, I won't. Jude, listen. The last time this happened, Callie hardly had any support. She only had you. And I'm not saying you didn't do a good job, but moms can help her in ways that you can't. They are going to get her some real help. They will make sure this never happens again. You don't have to go through this alone anymore."

He smiled at me. "Can we not go back to them just yet. I don't really want to deal with moms right now."

"Sure thing." I held my little brother and soon enough, he was asleep. I smiled down at him and picked him up. I carried him back to my moms.

"How's he doing?" Lena took him from me and held him on her lap.

"He's... hurting. He needs you."

We all sat and waited for what seemed like an eternity. Mariana fell asleep with her head on my shoulder and Jesus was starting to nod off.

"Mrs. Adams-Fosters?" A young doctor appeared at the double doors.

"Jesus, take Jude." Lena quickly passed a sleeping Jude to Jesus who had woken up.

"That's us!" Mom jumped out of her seat and took mama's hand.

"Come with me please."


	9. I'm Not A Victim

**Callie's POV**

"We gave her some heavy sedation so she will probably pretty out of it for quite awhile. She is on antibiotics because the wounds became infected. Do you happen to know what she used?" A voice, who I think was my doctor, said. I couldn't see where he was. I was just starting to come out of the anesthesia when everyone started talking.

"No, when I found her in the bathroom there wasn't anything around her."

"Okay, well you can be in here with her for awhile but I'm guessing she will just sleep. If you can, try and find out what she used. It will help us with the treatment of the infection."

"Thank you, doctor." Lena had been crying. "I'm going to go talk to the kids. Should I just take them home? Maybe they can see her tomorrow."

No! I had to at least see Jude. I tried to speak but it was so hard. "Ju- Jude!" I finally managed to get out.

"Lena, she's awake!" Stef ran to my side. "Hi, baby! How are you feeling?"

"I need to see Jude. Please!" Sleep was threatening to take me back but I fought as hard as I could.

"I'll go get him." Lena ran out of the room and left me alone with Stef.

"Why did you do this, love?" Stef wiped a tear from her eyes and kissed my cheek.

"The pain was too much... I couldn't do it anymore. I'm sorry." I was finally able to push sleep from my mind.

"Callie!" Jude's voice rang in my ears.

He jumped on my bed, careful to avoid my leg, and buried his face in my chest. "I'm so sorry. I'm so Jude." I kissed the top of his head and held him tight.

"You said never again. You promised me that you would never do anything like this ever again. Why did you lie to me?" His voice was just above a whisper but I knew Stef and Lena could hear him.

"Shh! We can't talk about that here. We can talk about that when I come home." I whispered in his ear. I continued louder. "You go home with Lena and be good, okay? You can't be acting up." Jude always started causing trouble whenever I got hurt or sent away.

"I'll be good." He pulled me close to his face so Stef and Lena couldn't hear him. "But only if you swear that this is the last time."

"I swear." We locked pinkies. I kissed his cheek and helped him off of my bed. "I'll see you soon. I love you, Jude."

"I love you too, Callie." He smiled at me and walked out of my room, hand-in-hand with Lena.

Stef pulled a chair up next to my bed and took my hand. "I have to ask you something and I want you to be completely honest with me. Okay?" I stared at her blankly, but she continued. "What did Jude mean when he said 'You said never again.'? Have you done this before Callie?"

I pulled my hand away from her and stared down at my lap.

"Callie, I need words from you. And don't you dare say that you don't know what he's talking about or that it meant nothing. It obviously does mean something or you wouldn't be getting this upset."

"I can't tell you." I whispered.

"Why can't you tell me?"

"Because you won't want me anymore. And I really don't think I will survive if you say that. I think it will kill me." I started to cry then.

"Nothing you say to me is going to make me not want you. You are my daughter, even if those papers aren't official! I love you just as much as I love your siblings. Please, Callie, just tell me what it is."

I let out a deep sigh and decided it was time to let it out. "After Liam hurt me for the first time, I got really sad. I guess it was kind of the final straw. Nothing hurt me anymore. I didn't care what people said or how many times they hit me. The only thing that kept me going was Jude. But, one night, he got really mad at me. He kept saying how I screwed everything up for him and if I wouldn't have flirted with Liam then we would have been adopted by the Olmsteads. That really broke me. I ran into the bathroom and searched through the medicine cabinet. I found a big bottle of aspirin. I was getting ready to down it but then Jude's face popped into my head. I walked to his room and begged him to take the pills from me. He made me promise him that I wouldn't do it again. And I didn't do anything like that again... well until earlier." I was crying my eyes out at this point. "Do you see now?! Do you understand how broken I am!"

Stef climbed into bed with me and pulled me into her arms. "Oh my sweet love. What you did is not uncommon. The majority of victims shut themselves off emotionally. You aren't broken. You aren't unfixable. You're a victim who never received the proper help you needed. Don't you worry. Mama and I are going to help you through every single step of the healing process."

"Really?" I questioned, wiping my eyes.

"Of course! We will make sure you have the best therapist to talk to. And one who specializes in victims of sexual assault. If you want, we can sign you up for a victim's support group. I think it will help you to hear other victims talk about what they are going through."

Victim. It made me so mad that Stef kept saying it. "Stop calling me that! I'm not a victim! I'm not a damn victim!" I ripped myself from her grasp and jumped out of my bed. I fell to the ground from the pain in my leg.

"Callie!" Stef ran to my side and tried to lift me but she was struggling. I'm sure it didn't help that I was fighting her. "Help! Can I PLEASE get some help in here!"

Two nurses and a doctor ran into my room and helped Stef lift me into the bed.

"Get your hand off of me! Don't touch me!" I screamed and thrashed in the bed. Their hands felt like Liam's all over my body.

"Get me some sedation!" The doctor shouted at one of the nurses. She ran out of the room but was back in an instant. "Callie, I need you to calm down." He pushed the medicine into my IV and held me down to the bed, which only made me fight harder. Liam did the same thing the first time. "Nurse, put the restraints on her. I'm afraid she's going to hurt herself."

Just as I was slipping into unconsciousness, I felt something fuzzy being put on my right wrist. After that, nothing.

 **Stef's POV**

I retreated to the corner, sobbing, when I saw the nurses put restraints on Callie. She finally stopped fighting them and the doctor declared that she was successfully sedated.

"I'm sorry that we had to do that. But, it truly is for her own good." The doctor came over and helped me back to Callie's bedside.

"Is this going to effect when she gets to come home?" I asked, looking up to the tall doctor.

"No, this is a rare side-effect of the sedation she was given earlier. Some patients get extremely agitated very quickly. It happens when the medicine starts to work it's way out of her system."

I sighed in relief. "But what about this medication? Will the same thing happen?"

"It is very unlikely. Most patients who react poorly to one have no reaction to the other. We will monitor her closely, but when Callie wakes up she should be back to the girl you know." He squeezed my hand reassuringly. "I will allow you to stay for tonight, but for the rest of her psychiatric hold she isn't allowed visitors."

"Not even during the day? She is going to think we abandoned her! Callie already thinks we want to give up on her. This will destroy her." I became very angry when the doctor said that. Callie was struggling so much to accept the fact that we wanted her. I couldn't even imagine what she was going to go through.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Adams-Foster. It is what's best for the patient." He walked out of the room, leaving me to my thoughts.

Hours passed and Callie slept peacefully. Lena called from home saying that kids were all in bed. Jude protested a little but Jesus coaxed him to bed with the promise of a skateboarding lesson the next day. Mariana was too upset to sleep alone, so Lena had a bed-buddy for the night.

Just as I was starting to doze off, Callie began to stir. She tried to pull her hands to her face but became upset when the restraints prevented her. She wasn't totally awake, so she just whimpered a little when she couldn't do what she wanted. When I cuddled up next to her she fell right back asleep. I finally fell asleep shortly after Callie did and slept a dreamless sleep.

 **Three days later**

"Mom! It's Callie's doctor. He wants to talk to you!" Mariana ran into the living room with an excited/terrified look on her face.

"Hello? Is everything alright?" My heart was beating so fast that I thought it was going to beat out of my chest.

"Stef? It's Dr. Larson. I have some good news for you. Callie has successfully passed the psych evaluation and she is responding very well to the antibiotics. If you are ready for her to come back home, she can be released to you now."

"Yes! We are very ready for her to come home. Can I come pick her up now?" I couldn't stop the smile that took over my face.

"Absolutely. There are some papers that need to be filled out, but she is ready to go other than that!"

I thanked the doctor and ran to get ready to leave.

"Lena! The doctor just called. Callie can come home so I am going to go pick her up." I skidded to a stop in our room and was met with a smiling Lena.

"That's great, honey! I'll start dinner while you are gone. It should be done by the time you get back with Callie." Lena jumped up from the bed and gave me a kiss on the lips.

"I don't think she is going to be too happy about the sleeping arrangements." I laughed with my wife. We came to the decision that we weren't comfortable with Callie sleeping in her room. Lena decided that she would move into the girls' room and sleep in Callie's bed for awhile and Callie would move in to our room and sleep on Lena's half of the bed.

"Well, she's going to have to deal with it! It's only for a little while until we know she isn't going to hurt herself again."

I kissed Lena goodbye and drove to the hospital. After I filled out the discharge papers and got her medicine from the hospital pharmacy, I went to my daughter's room and found her sitting on the bed, ready to leave.

"How are you feeling, love?" I kissed her on the forehead and sat down next to her.

"Better I guess. I feel so stupid for doing this." Her cheeks flushed when she spoke.

"You have nothing to feel stupid for. Let's get you home, yes?"

She smiled and nodded. I was surprised when she let me take her hand and lead her out to the car. Once she was comfortable in her seat I took off towards home.

"Stef?"

"Yes, love?"

"Would it be okay... never mind." She turned and looked out the window.

"What is it Callie?" I could tell she was embarrassed.

"Can I stay in your room tonight?" Her face was bright red. "I just... don't trust myself yet."

I smiled and silently laughed to myself. "I think that can be arranged."

 **Don't forget to review!**


	10. Court

**This chapter is 6 months in the future. The italics are journal entries. Also, if you are reading my other story,** ** _Not So Nice Guy_** **, I will be updating ASAP. But I am going to alternate days (most likely) on updating these two stories. It's too hard to write new chapters for different stories in one day. I moved into college this weekend (go Illini!) so my life is going to be pretty crazy for a while. I will try my hardest to get new reviews up every other day (every day for both stories combined)! Don't forget to review! -SDD**

 **Stef's POV**

 _I can't believe I haven't updated my journal since Callie was attacked. My last entry was from the night of her rape. That seems like a lifetime ago. These last six months have been some of the hardest of my life. Callie has struggled so much. She moved back into her room five months ago, but she still suffers from nightmares (although they are getting much better). Mariana told Lena and me that the only reason Callie went back to her own room was because she felt bad for taking Lena's spot and she didn't want to annoy us. I wish she just would have told us that she was still scared to sleep alone. Callie closes herself off so much... although I can't really blame her. But luckily she hasn't harmed herself since we brought her home from the hospital. Also, she won't leave the house without Lena, Brandon, Jesus, or myself. She's always clutching her pepper spray (something I bought for everyone in the family) when we are out in public. I thought she was getting better a while ago, but she got even worse than before a couple weeks ago. I'm guessing that's because Liam's trial started and she has to testify tomorrow... She is terrified. Liam called her from the jail and threatened her. He said if she testifies he will send his friends after her. It took detective Vaughn and me an entire week to convince her that we will keep her safe. Luckily the prosecution attorney was able to tack on threatening a witness to the charges. I can't wait for the trial to be over. Hopefully once she sees him being sent away to prison she will be able to heal more. Lena and I tried to get her to go to therapy but she refused. The other da-_

"Mom?" I looked up and I saw Callie standing in the doorway. I smiled. She had recently started calling Lena and me 'mama and mom'.

"Come on in, love." I put my journal in my drawer. "What's up?"

"I can't sleep. Can I stay in here tonight?" Callie looked down at her feet and shuffled awkwardly.

"Of course you can, love. Come here." I scooted over and pulled back the covers so she could get comfortable.

"Where's mama?"

"She's putting the boys to bed and getting lunches ready for tomorrow." By this time Callie was snuggled up to me. I kissed the top of her head and felt her flinch. "Are you nervous?"

"Yeah. Way more than the first time I testified against him. What if I screw up again? I mean, the last time I had to testify against Liam it did nothing. It didn't even go to trial…" She wiped a tear away quickly.

"That wasn't your fault. Your lawyer fed you questions that you couldn't answer truthfully. You did nothing wrong, Callie. Okay?"

"I guess." She mumbled. Callie rolled over so her back was against my side and buried her face in Lena's pillow.

I sighed. I wanted nothing more than for her to feel happy and safe again. After a while her breathing evened out. She would jump or flinch in her sleep occasionally, but other than that, she was very peaceful.

"I am finally done! Lunches are packed and everyone's outfits for court are ironed! I am so ready for bed." Lena walked into the room and immediately went to the bathroom to brush her teeth. "I can't believe the trial is tomorrow already. I thought it normally took at least a year before trials started."

"First of all, please spit! I don't want to see your mouth foaming over with toothpaste, love." I smirked. "And second of all, I may have had a little pull with the DA. I wanted this to be over as soon as possible for Callie. Speaking of which…" I motioned to Callie sleeping in the middle of the bed.

"Couldn't sleep?" Lena wiped her mouth and shut off the lights.

"She's scared about tomorrow. She thinks her testimony isn't going to do any good." I looked down at my oldest daughter who was fidgeting in her sleep and laid my hand on her back to calm her.

"Is she thinking about her last testimony? Because that wasn't even her fault. Her idiot of a lawyer…"

"I know. I already explained this to her." I interrupted. "Lena, I don't know how much more she can take before she falls apart completely or runs… again."

"Let's just focus on getting her through tomorrow." Lena grabbed my hand across Callie and squeezed it reassuringly.

"I love you."

"Love you more."

 **Callie's POV**

I woke up crammed between my moms. Stef had one arm wrapped around me, holding me close to her, and Lena was holding Stef's hand and mine with her other. I squirmed a little to see if they would let go, but Stef just pulled me closer. There was no getting out of it. Even though it was a little claustrophobic, it was nice. I felt safe and warm. I still had a few hours to sleep so I closed my eyes, praying I wouldn't dream anymore.

 **Three hours later**

"Should we get her up so she has extra time to get ready?" Lena's voice poked through my sleepy haze.

"I don't know. I think she would like a little extra time just in case she has a hard time. But on the other hand, she loves to sleep and I really don't feel like waking the beast." Stef laughed at her own joke and gained a snort from Lena.

"Beast, really? I guess that makes Mariana the beauty!" I joked.

"Callie! You scared the crap out of me!" Stef gasped.

"Stef…" Lena warned. I opened my eyes just in time to see Stef roll hers.

"How long have you been awake, love?"

"Ever since mama asked if you should get me up. You are both really bad at whispering."

"Well, you can sleep for a little bit longer if you want. I can get you up before mama takes everyone else to school."

"I'm already awake so I might as well get up. Am I not going to school today?" I really wanted to just so I wouldn't be thinking about testifying all day. "I think it would be nice to have distraction."

"Sorry, love. You have to go to the courthouse early so you can practice your testimony with the prosecution lawyer. I will take you and then mama will bring everyone else by later." Stef explained.

"But, mom! I don't want to stay here all day and mull over what's going to happen in court! _Please,_ can I just go to school?"

"Callie..."

"Whatever." I knew I had to go early but I didn't even have to be there until noon. Stef just wanted to keep me close. I got off the bed and walked to my room.

"Callie!" Stef yelled. "Get back here!" She followed me but I shut my door and locked it before she could come in.

"Stef, let it go."

"She can't just get pissed and walk away. She knows she has to talk about things." Stef and Lena were arguing right outside my door. Lena must have pulled her away because I couldn't hear them anymore.

I flopped down on my bed and let out an agitated sigh.

"Are you okay?" Mariana asked from the bathroom.

"No! I'm so sick and tired of Stef hovering over me like I'm going to freaking fall apart!" I buried my face in my pillow.

"You know she's just worried. We all are…"

"Well don't be! Today is the day that all of this gets put behind us. Liam _is_ going to prison." Even though I was completely terrified and I wanted nothing more than to not testify, I couldn't wait to put him behind bars. "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you."

"It's okay. I understand. I'm going down for breakfast. Are you coming?" Mariana questioned. She's been really good with me over the past couple months. She didn't push me when I didn't want to talk and when I did she was always there.

"No. I'm not hungry and I really don't feel like talking to moms. And if they say something about coming to check on me, please tell them not to. Say I'm asleep or something."

"Okay. See you later." Mariana bounced out of the room and I closed my eyes, trying to sleep a little more. But that didn't happen.

 **Mariana's POV**

"Morning, Miss Thing! Eggs and bacon are on the stove." Mama greeted me.

"Uhh, is there anything a little less… animal?" Everyone laughed. "What? It doesn't feel right to eat animals who were born just to be killed for food! It's sad…"

"You ate pepperoni pizza last week!" Jude pointed out. I stuck my tongue out at him and he smirked back at me."

"Is Callie coming down?" Mom asked. I knew she was going to say something. Callie was right, moms have been watching over her like a hawk for months. I guess it's because she was cutting, but she doesn't do that anymore.

"No, she went back to sleep. I don't think she wants to be bothered."

Mom got off her stool and wiped her mouth with her napkin. "I'm going to go check on her and see if she needs anything."

"Mom, don't! She wants to be alone." I tried my hardest to keep my mom down there but she is really stubborn.

"Well, that's just too bad."

 **Callie's POV**

I was just starting to doze when I heard a faint knock at my door. I groaned inwardly. Couldn't Mariana do one simple thing?"

I pulled the covers over my head and pretended to be asleep.

"Callie?" Stef walked in and sat on my bed. "I know you aren't asleep. You only pull your blankets up when you want to be left alone."

"Then leave me alone." I shot back.

"Listen, I'm sick of your attitude. I know you're upset that I won't let you go to school and that you have to face Liam today, but that doesn't give you a right to be rude to me." Stef pulled the blankets down and grabbed my chin so I couldn't turn away.

"Sorry." I mumbled as I pulled my face away from her grasp.

The hardness and anger in her eyes quickly disappeared. "Why don't you come down for some breakfast and then we can watch some movies or do whatever until we have to leave for the courthouse."

"I'll come down but I really don't want anything to eat. It will just upset my stomach."

My mom smiled at me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders as we walked down the stairs.

 **Five hours later**

"Callie Jacob." The bailiff announced my name from the doors that led to the courtroom. It was my turn to testify. The woman who saved my life walked out and gave me a reassuring smile.

"Are you ready, love?" Stef squeezed my hand. Lena was on my other side and kissed my cheek.

"No, but I have to go in." I stood up and walked to the doors but paused before I went in. "He's in there."

"Yes, but don't look at him. Just stare straight ahead until you get to the seat. Look at the lawyer who is talking to you or me and mama. All of us will be in there the whole time."

I took a deep breath and walked in. Everyone turned slightly to look at me as I walked in. Their eyes burned into me. I could feel the sadness and suspense in the room. Once I was seated I couldn't help but look at Liam. He was smiling at me. The same twisted smile he shot me when he saw me at Wyatt's party.

"Place your left hand on the bible and raise your right. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do."


	11. Questions

**Callie's POV**

"I do." I sat down in the hard wooden chair and tightly gripped the arm rests. The prosecution attorney stood from his seat and made his way over to me.

"Good afternoon, Callie. How are you?" He was a very nice man. He never pushed me when I couldn't continue during the practice testimony and never doubted anything I said.

"I've been better." I smiled slightly.

"Callie, can you tell me what happened on the night in question?"

I took a deep breath and started rambling off what happened. It seemed like it was the 100th time I'd told that horrific story. As I spoke, I looked jury members in the eye and watched their reactions. They looked horrified. Tears slipped out of my eyes but I did my best to wipe them away.

"Thank you. I'm sure that was very difficult to say in a courtroom full of strangers. Ms. Jacob, is the man who attacked you on that night in this room today?"

I wiped another tear away. "Yes, he's sitting right over there." I pointed to Liam and locked eyes with him. His were full of hatred and anger.

"Let the record reflect that Ms. Jacob has identified the defendant, Liam Olmstead, as her attacker. Nothing further, your Honor." The prosecution attorney smiled at me weakly and sat back down.

The defense lawyer stood and walked quickly to the witness box.

"Ms. Jacob, is it true that you have accused my client of "raping" you before?" She put air quotes around _raping_.

"Yes, he raped me when I was under his parent's care in the foster system."

"So you say, but that didn't even make it to trial. How do we know that you aren't just lying to get him in prison for something he didn't even do?"

"Objection!" The prosecution attorney jumped out of his seat.

"Sustained. Watch yourself Ms. Bolt." The judge warned.

"My apologies. Ms. Jacob, on the night of the alleged attack…"

"Alleged?! It isn't alleged! He raped me! I'm not making this up!" I cut her off. I was furious!

"Your Honor, will you please instruct the witness to allow me to finish my questions without interruption?"

"Ms. Jacob, please refrain from anymore outbursts."

"I'm sorry, your Honor." My cheeks flushed.

"Let me start again." She began, "On the night of the alleged attack, who were you walking with?"

"I was alone. I missed my bus stop and had to walk to my birth father's house."

"Alone? In that neighborhood? That's a pretty dangerous situation. Why didn't you make better plans?"

"I fell asleep on the bus and my phone died." This lawyer was pissing me off. She was looking for any loophole she could find to poke holes in my story.

"Sure. In the report from the hospital, the clothes documented were… jeans with rips in them, a tank top, and a bra. Don't you think your clothes were a little… risqué? I mean, you didn't even have any underwear!" She laughed slightly. "Couldn't you say you were asking for it?"

"No! Do you want to know the reason I didn't have any underwear? It's because _he_ threw them down the alley where he raped me! And I was wearing a coat over my "risqué" tank top but he took that off too. And what I was wearing is a horrible defense for rape!" I caught Stef's eyes. Tears were threatening to fall but she had a proud smile on her face.

I looked back to the defense attorney. Her face had a slight hint of worry on it. I was slowly tearing apart her plan of attack. She was trying to break me. She wanted me to screw up and say something that would get Liam off the hook.

"Why didn't you fight back? Yell, scream, something! You had options! You could have ran."

"I tried to fight back. But look at him! He's easily twice my size. And I did scream! He shoved my socks in my mouth to shut me up."

"Your Honor, Ms. Bolt's line of questioning is clearly unfounded. She is badgering the witness and she doesn't have solid line of questions coming. She's floundering!" Again, the prosecution attorney popped out of his seat and came to my defense.

"I agree. Ms. Bolt, either get your act together _or move on_." The judge had an annoyed look on his face.

"I'm sorry your honor. I have no more questions for this witness."

 **Stef's POV**

The trial seemed to be going pretty well. The defense attorney had pointless questions for Callie. And Callie handled them very well. After she was done testifying, she came and sat between Lena and me. I put one arm around her and held her hand with my free one.

The next witness called to the stand was the doctor who performed Callie's rape kit. The doctor said she found signs of an attack and fluids were present. I felt Callie tense in my arms. She had been so strong all day but she was slowly falling apart right next to me.

Next, the idiot of a defense lawyer questioned the doctor.

"Dr. Heron, you saying you found obvious signs of an attack. Is rape the _only_ thing that can cause these signs?"

"No, I suppose not."

"Then what else could possibly make you think that Ms. Jacob was raped? Possibly she engaged is rough sexual activity. Would that make the same lesions you found?"

"Yes, but I have a hard time believing Callie wasn't raped."

"Why do you say that?"

Dr. Heron sighed, obviously annoyed. She gave us an apologetic look. "When I performed the rape kit, Callie showed obvious signs of sexual abuse. She was crying and flinched every time I had to touch her. Also, she was covered in bruises. Obvious bruises were present on her wrists; bruises that would indicate someone forcefully held on to her."

"You say she flinched and cried when you touched her. Do you think that might be because she was being traumatized by you? I mean, a grown woman forcefully performing such a horrible procedure on a young girl?"

"Objection!"

"Withdrawn!" The lawyer smiled. "These bruises, could they have only been inflicted by my client? It is known that Ms. Jacob is in foster care. Perhaps her foster parents gave her those bruises. We all know how corrupt the foster care system is. You don't _really_ know who gave her those wounds, do you?"

"Your Honor!"

"Ms. Bolt, I am not going to warn you again! One more incident like that and I will hold you in contempt of court!"

"Nothing further."

Callie was freely crying now. I pulled her close. "I'm so sorry love. It's almost over." I kissed her cheek and she sank into me.

Liam was the next to testify. His lawyer asked him questions about how he knew Callie, things of that nature. He said he and Callie met when she was in his home in the system. Liam said Callie threw herself onto him and asked _him_ to have sex. He said he was afraid of what Callie might do if he said no, so he agreed. Callie tensed next to me. I knew how badly she wanted to scream at Liam.

"Mr. Olmstead, I have to admit, the prosecution has a pretty good case against you. Your semen was found inside your accuser. How did that happen?"

"On the night that Callie said I raped her, the second time I supposedly raped her, she called me from her work. She asked me to meet her in Freeport. She told me she missed me and wanted to be together again. I should have said no, after what happened last time, but my feelings for Callie are just so strong. I couldn't help myself."

"What about the bruises and the cut on Callie's forehead from the gun you supposedly had?"

"What can I say? I just did what she asked. She wanted it rough."

Callie jumped out of my arms and ran out of the courtroom. I quickly got up and followed her. I made it out just in time to see her run into the bathroom. When I got to her she was in a stall puking. There were some women at the mirrors fixing their makeup.

"Out. Now!" I flashed my badge to them and they quickly ran out. I locked the door behind and waited for Callie to come out.

After about five minutes Callie walked out of the stall. She looked very weak and she was ghostly pale.

"Are you feeling better, love?" I got a paper towel and placed in on the back of her neck.

"No. I feel like crap. I can't believe he said those things about me. It wasn't true. Please don't think that I wanted that…" She rinsed her mouth and wiped her tears away.

"I don't believe anything he said. I know you're telling the truth." I pulled her into a hug. "Do you want to go back in there?"

She nodded. We walked out, but everyone was in the lobby area. I led Callie up to Lena and the rest of the kids.

"The jury just went out to deliberate. We're in recess until they come to a decision." Lena hugged Callie and kissed me.

"How long is that going to take?" Jesus asked.

"It could be minutes or it could be weeks. There isn't a set time for how long they have." I explained. "Normally it takes about a day. Let's go get some lunch and then go home. They'll call us when the jury is back."

Lena and I led our family out to the car, but we were stopped by a desk clerk on the way out.

"The jury is back."

I looked at Lena. Her eyes were filled with hope and worry.

"Is that good or bad?" Mariana questioned.

"It could be either one. It means that they all agreed and didn't have to do much deliberating." I took Callie's hand and Lena took her other. Once we were seated in the courtroom I looked down to each of my children. They were all holding hands to support each other. That brought tears to my eyes. I was so proud of each one of them.

The jury filed in and took their seats. The forewoman handed a slip of paper to the bailiff who delivered it to the judge. I tried to read the judge's face as he looked over the paper but he was a blank slate.

"Madam Foreman, have you come to a decision?"

"We have, your Honor."

 **Dun dun dun! What do you think the verdict will be? Let me know in the reviews! I think there will only be two more chapters. The verdict and the aftermath for one chapter and then if Callie will be adopted or not for the other.**


	12. Guilty

**Callie's POV**

"Madam Foreman, on the charge of rape in the first degree, how do you find?" The judge's words jumbled in my ears. My stomach was in knots and tears were pouring out of my eyes.

"We find the defendant, Liam Olmstead, guilty."

 _Guilty!_ My heart jumped in my chest. Stef squeezed me tightly and kissed my cheek.

"On the charge of attempted murder in the second degree, how do you find?"

"Guilty."

"On the charge of intimidating and threatening a witness, how do you find?"

"Guilty." The courtroom erupted into applause. Liam slammed his fists down on the table and turned to glare at me. For once, I wasn't afraid of him. He couldn't hurt me anymore. Liam Olmstead was finally going to prison for all of the hurt he'd caused.

"Order! Order in my courtroom!" The judge banged his gavel and the room fell silent. "Court officer, take Mr. Olmstead into custody. He will be remanded to the county jail until sentencing next week."

"No! You can't do this! Let me go!" Liam struggled against the bailiff's grip, but he was no match for the buff guard. He screamed all the way out of the courtroom.

I was in a stated of euphoria. My body was numb and my mind was racing; but this time it was racing with _good_ thoughts. My moms were hugging me and my siblings were hugging each other. People I didn't even know were coming up to me and congratulating me, saying things like

"Thank you for putting that monster away!"

"Liam got what he deserved!"

"You are so brave for going through with this!"

Lena grabbed my hand and led me out to the lobby with Stef and the rest of our family trailing behind. She was hugging me and saying how we were going to celebrate tonight. I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw a familiar face waiting in the lobby.

"I'll be right back mama." I squeezed her hand when she saw who I was looking at.

I stood in front of this person and could help but feel relief and guilt.

"Hey Robert. I didn't know you were coming." This man had been a stranger to me over the last six months ever since he attacked Liam at the precinct.

"I wanted to support you. I figured it would be difficult and I wanted you to know that I love you. And, I'm sorry for what happened at the police station. I just got so mad, I couldn't…"

I cut Robert off with a hug. I'd been missing him but I didn't know how to talk to him without bringing up the Liam situation. "It's okay. You were just protecting me. I overreacted. And, I love you too."

Robert hugged me tightly. "Sophia has missed you like crazy. Would you like to come over sometime for dinner? Maybe the two of you could go riding or to a movie."

"That would be nice. Actually, we are all going out to eat. Why do you, Jill, and Sophia join us? It would be nice to have my _whole_ family with me to celebrate the victory."

Robert's face lit up. "We wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Well, this is a sight I like to see!" Stef said as she and Lena walked up behind us, hand in hand.

"Can the Quinns come with us to dinner?" I put my best puppy dog face on, knowing Stef would never say no.

"I think they would make a very nice addition. We are going to Abelli's on The Hill."

"I'll go get Soph and Jill. We'll meet you there in… fifteen minutes?"

"See you then! And thank you, Robert, for coming and supporting _our_ daughter." Stef hugged him. I was so glad to see all of my parents finally getting along.

I gave Robert one last hug before he left and was met by a giant group hug by all of my siblings.

"You did it Callie!" Jude squeezed me tight as he whispered in my ear. I quickly blinked away tears and pulled my little brother close.

"Alright you two! Let's go celebrate!" Stef grabbed my hand and pulled me to her side and Lena did the same to Jude. I'd never been so happy in my life. Things were going perfectly!

We made our way to the front steps, but I stopped when I heard my name.

"Callie! Hey, stop!" Liam's voice rang in my ears.

I turned slowly and was met by his icy glare.

"What do you want Liam?"

"I told you that if you testified, I would make you pay. You better watch your back! And your precious family too!" The bailiff dragged him away, still screaming.

"Don't worry, love. Nothing is going to happen to you." Stef reassured me.

 **Stef's POV**

Callie was withdrawn and sad for the rest of the night after Liam threatened her in the courthouse. She built her walls back up and she wouldn't let anyone in. But, regardless, dinner was very nice. The Quinns joined us and then treated us to ice cream afterwards.

"So, Callie, do you wanna stay the night tonight?" Sophia was attached to Callie all night. I know she missed Callie, but I could tell she wanted to be alone. "We could go to the stables and go riding!"

"Sophia, Callie has had a rough day. Let's just give her some space to breathe and process what has happened." Jill tried to pull her daughter away, but Sophia resisted.

"What's there to process? He was found guilty. She should be happy and she's just been sulking all night!" Sophia turned her attention back to Callie. "Seriously Callie! What's the matter with you?!"

Callie tore away from the group and ran down the block. I heard Jill and Robert chastising Sophia as I took off after Callie.

"Hey hey hey! Slow down!" I finally caught up to her and grabbed her arm to stop her.

"I can't do this! This was turning out to be such a good day and then Liam freaking ruined it! And Sophia didn't help either. Will you take me home? Please, I just want to go to bed and be done with this day." She collapsed into my arms. I pulled her down to the ground and sat on the curb with her in my arms.

"Let's just sit here for a minute and relax." As we rocked, her sobs resolved to sniffle and her breathing evened out. I looked up as I saw our SUV and Volvo pull around the corner.

"How's it going down here?" Lena parked the SUV and joined us on the sidewalk.

"I think it's time to get everyone home and into bed. This has been a really long day." I pulled Callie into a sitting position. "What do you say, Callie?"

She wiped her tears and nodded. Lena and I drove Callie and Jude in the SUV while Brandon drove himself and the twins in the Volvo.

When we got home Callie jumped out of the car and ran inside. Jude tried to stop her but Lena pulled him aside. I instructed the other kids to stay downstairs and followed Callie. I looked on the first floor but didn't find her, so I checked upstairs in every bedroom. Finding them empty I knocked on the bathroom door.

"Callie, love, are you in there?" I was met with silence but when I twisted the doorknob it was locked. "Please open this door. I need you to come out and talk to me."

"Go away, Stef!" Callie's voice was thick with emotion and laced with anger. "I don't feel good and I just want some privacy."

I hesitated at the door, afraid she was hurting herself again, but retreated to my own room when I heard her throw up.

"Is Callie okay? She's not cutting again, is she?" Jude launched himself out of Lena's arms and met me at the doorway.

"No, love. She's not feeling very good right now. Callie just needs some space." I pulled my youngest into a tight hug and kissed the top of his head.

"Why don't you get into bed and I'll come in and say goodnight in a little bit." Lena ushered Jude to his room and met me back in our room seconds later. "Well, today was… interesting."

"I can't believe he's going to prison. It just doesn't seem real." I leaned my head on my wife's shoulder. "I wish Callie could have enjoyed the celebration. If Liam wouldn't have been such an ass…"

"I know, my love, I know." Lena pulled me into her arms and rocked me. I hated letting her see me so vulnerable, but sometimes it's just so hard to keep a tough exterior.

"Mom…" I was pulled out of my thoughts by Callie's voice. I looked up and saw her standing in our doorway looking extremely scared and weak.

"Come here, love. Do you want to sleep in here with us tonight?" I moved away from Lena, creating a space for Callie to sit.

"I need you to come to me. I need your help." Callie had barely moved a muscle and she looked like she was going to fall apart at any second. I jumped off the bed and rushed to her. "Take this from me, please." She lifted her hand and turned it over to reveal a scalpel.

I gasped and quickly but calmly took it from her. "Go sit down next to mama." I gave Callie an encouraging push towards Lena.

"Callie, did you hurt yourself with this?" I pointed to the metal knife in my hand and glanced over it, checking for blood.

"Not today. Ever since Liam yelled at me after court, all I've wanted to do is cut. But when I got the chance all I could remember was being put in the hospital in those restraints… I don't want to go back. Please don't send me back there! I promise I'm not going to hurt myself!" Callie turned to face Lena, her eyes welling with tears.

Lena pulled Callie onto her lap. "We aren't sending you away, love. We would never do that."

"Callie, you said you didn't hurt yourself with this _today_." I sat down on the bed, making sure the scalpel was out of Callie's reach.

She sniffled and sat up as she wiped her tears. "Do you remember when I came home from the hospital and you asked me what I had used to cut my leg?"

"Yes, you gave me some razor blades and said you'd used them." I remembered the day clearly. Callie was still on antibiotics for the infection in her leg and she had only been home for a day. When she handed me the blades, it was almost like she was handing me her most prized possession.

"Well, I lied. I used that." She pointed to the scalpel. "I took it from the hospital after Liam attacked me. I hadn't cut since I got to this house. But all those memories of being back at the Olmstead's came rushing back and I couldn't handle it. I took it just to feel better. But then I heard you getting ready to tell Jude and everyone what happened and I freaked out. I kept it all this time, not because I wanted to hurt myself, but because it reminded me of a place I never wanted to be again. I'm sorry." She looked down at her hands and let her tears fall.

"It's okay Callie. You came to us instead. That is a really big improvement." Lena moved Callie so she was leaning against the backboard and pulled her close.

I sat there, watching my daughter and my wife. They looked so peaceful, yet so broken. The weight of the knife in my handed brought me back to reality. I knew I had to get rid of it, but I didn't know where. If I just threw it away, one of the kids could find it and ask questions. If I hid it, Callie could find it and use it again. I decided it would be best to lock it in my gun safe and get rid of it in the morning. No one knew the combination to open my safe, not even Lena, so I knew it would be safe there.

After locking it away, I joined Callie and Lena on the bed. Callie moved from Lena's arms to mine and snuggled up against me.

"I'm going to tuck the other kids into bed." Lena squeezed my hand before she left.

"What's going through your head, love? Are you having bad thoughts again?" I kissed the top of her head, but I was not prepared when she lurched from my hold.

"Don't say that!" She sighed in frustration at my confused look. " _Bad thoughts_. It makes me sound like a freaking mental patient or like I want to shoot up a school!" She paced back and forth across the room trying to calm herself down. "Sometimes I think about hurting myself, okay? Just please don't call it _bad thoughts_. I hate the way that sounds."

I was shocked at how angry she got. "Okay, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset."

She sighed. "No I'm sorry. I should have gotten so mad. It isn't even that big of a deal. I guess I'm just extra irritable today."

"Why don't you come lay down and try to sleep? We don't have to talk anymore tonight."

Callie gladly obliged and joined me again on the bed. Within minutes she was snoring peacefully.

"Is everything okay? I thought I heard her yelling." Lena entered the room again as she tied her curly hair up into a bun.

"She's okay." I looked down at my oldest daughter. "She's going to be okay."

 **Sorry this chapter is so short. I've been super busy lately. Don't forget to review!**


	13. Mariana's Meltdown

**First of all, I'm so sorry that I haven't updated in so long! I'm still trying to adjust to college life so my schedule is really hectic. Second of all, I will try to update more often. I think I will finish this story (3 or 4 more chapters probably) and then I will begin updating** ** _Not So Nice Guy_** **again. Happy reading!**

 **Stef's POV**

I woke up and stretched only to be met with an empty bed. Lena had an early meeting at the school, so I was expecting her to be gone, but the fact that Callie was MIA scared me. I pulled on a sweatshirt and stepped into my slippers. I checked the girls' room, but Mariana was the only one in there. I peeked into every room upstairs and when I was met with emptiness my heart began to sink. I walked down the stairs hoping to find Callie in the living room or kitchen.

"Oh crap!" I heard from the kitchen. I ran in and found her quickly trying to salvage breakfast. The milk carton had been knocked off the counter and bacon, eggs, and pancakes were burning and she was desperately fanning the smoke so the smoke detector wouldn't go off.

I opened the back door and the window in front of the sink to help air out the small space. Luckily we were quick enough and the detector didn't get a chance to go off.

Callie violently threw the breakfast into the trash and sank down to the floor. I gathered her in my arms and pulled her into the living room to the couch.

"I'm sorry. I'm sure this isn't how you wanted to spend your morning. I'm fine. I need to go finish cleaning up." Callie tried to get up but I held her close.

"No, you don't need to apologize for anything and you definitely don't need to worry about the kitchen. I will deal with that later. What's going on in your mind?" I pulled her closer and smiled when I felt her relax into me.

"I just wanted to do something nice for everyone. I was trying to make breakfast but I fell asleep at the table and everything started to burn." She laughed a little and wiped a stray tear from her face. "I'm being so ridiculous. I'm literally crying over spilt milk. I think I'm a little stressed."

"Well, how about I go and clean up the kitchen and then we can go back upstairs and plan something fun for today. We can wait until mama gets back and then go do anything you want. Shopping, the beach, a movie… whatever you want!"

"That sounds great." A genuine smile spread across Callie's face. "Would it be okay if… if maybe…" I could see the conflict build behind her eyes and her brow furrowed in frustration.

"If what, love?"

"Can you and I just have a day together? It's not like I don't want to spend time with mama, but I'd rather just have some time with you alone. If not that's totally okay… I love spending time with both of you." She quickly tried to explain herself like she'd done something wrong.

"Callie, love, its fine. I know mama won't care. We can…" I was interrupted by my phone ringing. I held up my index finger to Callie to indicate that I would be right back. I went out onto the front porch and shivered in the cool morning air. I looked at the caller ID and smiled when I saw Lena's beautiful picture. "Hey, love. What's up?"

"Stef, I'm so sorry but this meeting is running long and I'm going to be later than expected. I don't think I will be back until around 1:00." Lena's voice was filled with regret. She hated it when she had to work on the weekends and had to miss out on family time.

"It's fine Lena. I think all of the kids have things planned anyway."

She sighed on the other end. "Okay… how is Callie? Was she better this morning?"

"She's fine. She tried to make breakfast but accidentally burnt everything."

"Wow, she really is your daughter!" Lena said sarcastically.

"Hey, you watch it! Anyway, she's stressed out so the two of us are going to have a relaxation day. When you get home you'll have the house to yourself so you can have some relaxation time of your own."

"You, my dear wife, are a miracle worker!" Lena was nearly giddy. "Well, I have to get back in there. Have a good day and tell my babies that I love them!"

"Will do. Bye love." I hung up the phone and went back inside. "Well, mama has to stay late at work anyway so it isn't going to be a big deal that we have some mom-and-Callie time." I looked up from my phone to find out that I was talking to an empty room. "Callie?" I made my way to the kitchen to find her cleaning. "I told you I would do this, Callie."

"I know, but I wanted to help. I made the mess so I should, at the very least, help clean it." She had already done most of the work. The dishes were clean and waiting to be dried. She had already cleaned up the milk and was wiping down the counters. I picked up a towel and started drying the dishes.

"So, what do you want to do today?"

She shook the rag into the trash can and thought for a second. "Can I show you the places where I used to live?" Her face blushed a little. "Jude and I haven't really told you much about our other houses, except for the Olmstead's, and I feel like you have the right to know."

My heart broke inside my chest. I wanted to know everything my children had endured, but I knew it was going to be a hard day for the both of us. "Of course we can do that. Why don't you go upstairs and get ready to go. I'll finish up down here."

Callie smiled and nodded and took off up the stairs. I smiled as I watched her go. She was such a good girl and deserved the world. I put the dishes away and put the food back in the fridge when my phone rang again.

"Hello?"

"Stef, its Marie."

"Hey, Marie! How's everything going?" My heart began to beat quicker. Calls from the adoption attorney always made me nervous.

"I'm fine, thank you. I have some news for you."

 **Mariana's POV**

I woke up to Callie getting ready in our room. It was 9:00 in the morning and I was nowhere close to wanting to be awake.

"Where are you going? And why are you up so early? It's basically the middle of the night Callie!" I rolled over and buried my face in the pillow.

"Good morning, nice to talk to you too Mariana!" Callie was always so snarky in the morning. "First of all, nine in the morning is nowhere close to early. I like to actually have time to do things instead of just sleep all day. And mom and I are going to spend the day together."

I sat up quickly, suddenly very interested in the conversation. "Oooh! Where are you going? Shopping? I want to come too!" I loved spending time with moms and Callie. It's always nice to have time away from the boys.

"Umm… I think this is just going to be a me and mom thing. Sorry." Callie grabbed her clothes and went into the bathroom.

I flopped down again, annoyed. Moms never spent time with me anymore. They were only focused on Callie.

 **Several hours later**

 **Lena's POV**

My meetings ran way longer than expected and I didn't get home until nearly four in the afternoon. A long afternoon nap was definitely calling my name. I walked in the front door and saw Mariana flopped down on the couch with a grumpy look on her face. To be honest, I was a little disappointed that she was there. I was expecting to have the house to myself.

"Hey Miss Thing. What are you doing home? I figured you would have plans today." I sat down next to her and gave her a quick peck on the cheek which she quickly recoiled from. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" She tried to get up but I grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to the couch.

"No way! You know that yelling and running away from your feelings doesn't work in this house. Now, you are going to sit here until you tell me what's going on with you."

I guess those were the magic words because Mariana exploded. "Why do you and mom only spend time with Callie?! Why can't _we_ ever have time together?! You've only payed attention to her for the last six months. Did you forget that you have four other children? Actually, Callie _technically_ isn't even your child yet! The adoption isn't even scheduled!" Tears were streaming down her face.

"Hey! You know better than that! Callie is just as much our child as you and your siblings. We don't need a piece of paper to tell us that she is our daughter." I took a deep breath and tried not to get furious. "Callie is going through a _very_ rough patch right now. She needs a little bit more attention that you and your brothers. I'm sorry if you feel like we've been ignoring you. We never intended for that to happen."

"A _little_ more attention?! She gets ALL of your attention! Do you even know half of the things that are happening with the rest of us right now? Jesus just got voted as team captain for wrestling. He is the _best_ wrestler we have at Anchor Beach. There are scouts coming to watch him at the next match. He is most likely going to get a scholarship to college!" She wiped tears from her eyes and jumped up off the couch. "Jude and Connor came out at school together. Jude was so scared and he wanted to talk to you about it one night but you told him "later". You never talked to him! It has been hell for him for the last few weeks. Brandon sent in one of his compositions to a prestigious music competition and he won! He is getting a huge scholarship for college. And Matt and I broke up! I wanted nothing more than to have a night with you and mom but you were too busy with prepping Callie for the trial. It wasn't even close to the day she had to testify. I understand that Callie needs you. I can't imagine what she's going through and I hope I never have to experience it. But, we need you too! I'm sorry if our problems are as important as getting raped but they are real issues that we need our moms for!"

Mariana collapsed to the floor and sobbed. I pulled her into my arms and rocked her silently. Inside I kicked myself for not paying enough attention to my other children. Mariana was right. Their problems were real and they needed us. "I'm so sorry, love. I'm so, so sorry. I promise that I will talk to mom when she gets home and we will fix this. Why don't you go upstairs and relax for a while. We will order in for dinner and have family night. We can play games and watch movies… whatever you guys want to do."

Mariana nodded. "Could we all maybe just talk, too? I feel like we have all been so disconnected lately. I miss talking to everyone."

"I think that's a great idea." I kissed my youngest daughter's forehead and sent her upstairs.

I sat on the couch for a while thinking about all of the ways I'd failed my children. Just as I started to doze off, the front door opened. Stef and Callie walked in. They both had puffy red eyes and tear stained cheeks.

"Is everything okay?" I jumped off the couch and ran to them. I pulled them both into tight hugs and eagerly waited for a response.

Stef and Callie shared a look and smiled at each other. "Everything is… great." Callie smiled. It was a smile that I hadn't seen in months.

I looked at Stef and gave her a look that said "we need to talk".

"Callie, why don't you go upstairs for a while?" Stef gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

Callie looked between the two of us and seemed to get the hint that we needed some alone time. She nodded and quickly climbed the stairs.

"Stef, we need to talk."

"Yeah, I have some news too. Marie called."

 **What do you think is going to happen? What was the call from Marie about? Will the family get back to normal? Let me know what you think in the reviews! I think the next chapter will be the events of Callie and Stef's day and the chapter after that will be the family day. Don't forget to review!**


	14. Home

**Callie's POV**

I felt really bad excluding Mariana from my day with Stef, but I wasn't in the mood for shopping and having a "girls" day. I knew that's what the day would turn into if she tagged along. All I wanted was to finally let Stef into my past. Lena would come eventually, but both of my moms at the same time would be too much.

I looked at Mariana one more time before I went downstairs. She looked so sad and so angry. I decided I would talk to her when I got back and hoped she wouldn't be too mad at me. I made my way downstairs and Stef was waiting for me in the foyer.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you wait for me."

"Callie, you don't need to apologize for everything." Stef looked at me like she could read my mind. "You aren't going to get in trouble for making me wait." I guess she really could read my mind.

"We should probably get going." I couldn't look into Stef's eyes. Every time she looked at me, I felt like I was going to break into a million pieces.

Stef smiled at me sadly and took my hand as we walked out to the car.

"Where to first?" She started up the car and pulled out of the driveway.

"Let's start at the beginning. 402 Hemmingway Drive, Mission Bay. We stayed here the night my mom died." My throat tightened as soon as I mentioned my mom. Every time I walked past one of my old foster houses I would think about her and I would want to cry.

We drove for about ten minutes and pulled in front of my first foster home.

"They were nice." I smiled a little as I recalled some of the only good memories from foster care. "But they couldn't keep us." My smile fell of my face as I dropped my head.

"How come?" Stef wiped a tear from my face.

"We were there for two weeks. They said that they wanted to keep us forever, but then they got bad news. She found out that she had breast cancer. It was going to be too much to have two new children trying to go through the adoption process while she was having surgeries and chemo. So, we had to go."

"I'm sorry, love."

"No apologizing, mom. If I can't do it, you can't either. And there are too many houses to say sorry every time." I looked down at the piece of paper I had brought with me. It had every address on it. "Next is the Kinney apartment complex. Do you know where that is?"

Stef nodded. When we reached the apartments, we got out of the car and walked to the building I stayed in.

I looked over at Stef. Her face was filled with horror. I couldn't blame her. Those apartments were horrible.

"Are you okay?" I grabbed her hand and gave it a little squeeze.

She looked shocked when she turned to me. "Don't you worry about me. How about you?"

I took a deep breath. "I'm okay. These people were… bad, to say the least. They didn't hurt us, well not directly, but they were still evil people. They packaged and sold drugs. Cocaine mostly. They made Jude and I carry the packages in our backpacks. We would walk to the park down the street and wait for the buyers to come. They would get into our bags, take their stuff, and replace the package with cash. But, one time, this guy didn't put money in the bag. When I told him that my foster parents would be mad if I didn't come back with money he slapped me."

Stef gasped and pulled me into a hug. "How old were you?"

"Ten. It was only about two months after my mom died. But, running the drugs wasn't even the worst thing that happened while we were there. My mom's funeral was delayed because of the investigation of my dad. It ended up being the second day that we were here and they wouldn't take us. Jude cried all day." I wiped a tear from my face. "I've never told anyone that before."

"Were you taken from their care or did they say they couldn't keep you?"

"We were taken from them. They decided to expand their products. They started making meth. Jude and I got really sick. We had to be hospitalized. But, the really crappy thing that happened is that their foster license didn't even get taken away. They just got a fine and charged with a misdemeanor."

Stef hugged me tightly again. We drove to the other houses and I told her all of the horrors that happened in each of them.

 **Stef's POV**

After Callie and I went to the first four houses, we stopped for lunch. We went to this little pizzeria where they serve super greasy slices that are as big as your face.

"Are you holding up okay, love? If this is getting too hard for you we can go home. We don't have to finish."

"No, I want to keep going. I mean, unless you want to. I get that this stuff isn't exactly light conversation." Callie dabbed her slice of pizza with a napkin and held it up so I could see. "I think they went overboard with the grease."

I laughed at the soaked napkin. "I think you're right." I stopped and watch her for a second. She was so beautiful and so different from the angry girl I met the first night she stayed with us. "You know, you've told me everything that has happened to _you_ in these houses, but not Jude."

The smile that had taken over her face quickly disappeared. "I know. I figured that it was his place to tell you what happened to him when he's ready… if he ever is. I mean, he never told you or mama anything about me. But, I hope he does tell you. He had it _really_ bad."

"Mama and I will try to talk to him, promise. Well, are you ready to go? I don't think I can take one more bite!"

"Me either! And we still have more houses to go to."

I paid for lunch and then we got settled in the car. "Where to next?"

Callie tensed. "Uh, the Olmstead's." A tear slipped from her eye. "I'm sorry, but can we skip this one? I just don't think I can handle seeing that place today."

"Of course." I wiped the tear from her cheek and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead.

"Next, then, would be the Harland's. That's where Jude and I were right before I went to juvie and before we found you and mama. 2758 East 7th Avenue."

When we arrived, Callie gasped. The house that I once busted into to save Brandon, Callie, and Jude was gone. The lot was vacant and had a for sale sign in the yard.

"It's… gone." Callie jumped out of the car and ran to the lot. "I can't believe that it's gone." She sank down to the ground and pushed her hands onto the soft earth. "This house was hell. He was such a bastard. Half of the time he wouldn't feed us and the other half of the time we would have to fend for ourselves. I had to steal so much food just so me and Jude wouldn't starve to death." She looked like she was about ready to throw up. I couldn't really blame her. I was only in that house for ten minutes and I hated it the whole time. "Can we go?"

I nodded and helped her up. "Well, that's it, right? Should we head home?"

"There's actually one more house."

I was very confused. "We missed one?"

"No. It's Helen's house."

I'd completely forgotten about Helen's. Callie hadn't said anything about what happened there, but she was definitely different for a couple days after we got her home.

The drive wasn't too far. But, Helen was outside gardening when we got to her house so we just drove by.

"I never told you what happened when I was there. She… she locked me in the bedroom because she said no one had ever ran away from her and I wasn't going to be the first."

"She what?!" I was furious. How could someone lock a child in a room?

"Mom, please don't get mad."

"How can I not get mad, Callie? She _locked_ you in a bedroom! What if there had been an emergency? What if, God forbid, there was a fire and you couldn't get out? What she did was illegal and she needs to be punished."

"Have you not listened to anything I've told you today? Almost every single family did something illegal to me or Jude. At least she didn't beat me."

"I'm sorry love. I guess I'm just so mad because you were in our care when that happened. If mama and I would have just gotten our foster license renewed that never would have happened."

"It's fine. Oh, there's one more house. You drive and I'll give you directions as we go."

I was confused yet again but I decided to just go along with it. Callie was taking me all over town. And something in her demeanor had changed. She wasn't so tense. She looked relaxed, peaceful, and… happy.

"Are we ever going to get to this mystery house or are you just sending me on a wild goose chase?" I joked.

Callie stuck her tongue out at me. "Turn left in two blocks and then right four blocks after that."

I thought for a minute. "That's our edition. You've lived in our edition before?"

She nodded. "Yeah. This family is great. They are definitely, without a doubt, the _best_ family Jude and I have ever been with. They made us feel welcome the minute we were placed with them. Well, I guess I could say differently about their kids. Their daughter was a little hostile in the beginning, but she eventually warmed up to us." My heart broke a little. Why had Callie or Jude never said anything about this family to us? "Both of the parents were very protective over both of us and it was the first place that Jude was finally allowed to be who he is."

"Do you miss them?"

"No." Callie cracked a little smile.

"You don't? How come? They seem like they were wonderful to you."

"Stop here."

I looked out the window and broke down into tears. We were home.

"I don't miss them, because they _are_ wonderful to us. I have two beautiful moms that love me, and even better than that, they love my baby brother too." Callie was crying now too.

"You are a devious little girl, you know that?!" I pulled Callie into a tight hug and peppered her face with kisses. We cried and hugged for a few minutes. "Should we go inside?"

"I guess so." We walked up to the front door, but Callie stopped me. "I love you, mom."

"I love you too Callie."

When we finally got inside, Lena was laying on the couch, almost asleep. She opened her eyes and immediately shot off the couch.

"Is everything okay?" She hugged us both tightly. I guess our puffy eyes gave us away.

"Everything is… great." Callie smile at me. I looked back at Lena and she was giving me a look that said we needed to talk.

"Callie, why don't you go upstairs for a while?"

 **Callie's POV**

I got the feeling that moms needed to talk so I quickly made my way upstairs, but listened from the landing.

"Stef, we need to talk."

"Yeah, I have some news too. Marie called." Stef's words were like bombs going off. That call could mean so many things. My heart nearly stopped as I waited for one of them to talk.

"You first."

 **What do you think?! This chapter wasn't planned AT ALL so I apologize if it kind of bounces around. PLEASE leave me some reviews! You really don't understand how much I love hearing what you think!**


	15. Family Night

**Sorry this chapter is so short! Hope you enjoy it anyway!**

 **Callie's POV**

"You first." Stef and Lena spoke in unison. They were both silent and I could imagine the look being shared. Stef would being giving Lena the "You aren't going to break me!" look and Lena would be staring back with a look that said "You'll give in eventually!"

The tension was building inside me and I just wanted to scream at them to talk!

"Fine!" Lena broke. "Mariana was pretty upset today. She said that we only pay attention to Callie anymore. And, you know, I understand where she's coming from."

"That's ridiculous! Sure, we've had to pay more attention to Callie over the last six months, but we pay attention to the other kids too. What did Mariana expect? Did she think we were just going to make Callie work through being raped for a second time by herself?"

"No, she didn't think that at all. But, we have been kind of absent. Do you know what's happening with the other four?"

"Well, let's see. Brandon is… hmm. I guess I'm drawing a blank on him. But Jude has been… damn. I guess we have dropped the ball a little."

"Let's just say that there is _a lot_ going on with all of them and we are missing out. Anyway, Mariana wants to have a family night tonight."

"That sounds like a good idea. What is this family night going to entail?" Stef sounded really upset. She let out a big sigh when she spoke.

"We're ordering take-out, playing games and watching movies, and _talking_."

"Talking?! Whose idea was that?"

"Mariana's! She said she feels like we've all been really disconnected lately. Anyway, what did Marie say? Please tell me that it was good news."

I'd completely forgotten about the call from Marie. I was too worried about how much pain I'd caused my siblings by getting so much of our moms' attention lately. My stomach was doing flips and my heart was beating at a hundred miles an hour. I couldn't sit there any longer. Slowly and quietly, I got up and made my way into my room. I wouldn't be able to handle it if it was bad news and they would tell me if it was good news. There must have been a pretty worried look on my face because Mariana didn't miss the chance to comment

"What's the matter with you? Was your 'mom and Callie' day sucky?" Mariana said as she sulked from her bed

"Hey listen, I'm really sorry about this morning. And… I'm really sorry about the past six months."

"What do you mean?" Mariana sat up, now intrigued by the conversation.

"I heard moms talking downstairs. Lena said that you got upset today and said that I'd been getting all of their attention."

"Look, I'm really sorry-"

"Don't you apologize for anything. You were right. I have been hogging them and _I_ am sorry. You needed them too. But don't worry. I'm going to make sure that they don't ignore you guys anymore. And I think your idea for a family night is great. I can't wait!"

Mariana smiled at me and then jumped off her bed. She tackled me onto my own in a bear hug. "I'm sorry that I was such a bitch this morning. Can you forgive me?"

"Of course. I hate fighting with you!" I smiled and gently pushed her off of me. There was a knock at the door and moms came in.

"You're supposed to wait for us to answer, moms!" Mariana scowled.

Stef and Lena shared an amused look and laughed a little. "Come downstairs ladies. We're going to decide what to get for dinner."

We grabbed our phones as moms gathered the boys and met everyone downstairs at the kitchen table.

"So, what should we get? There's Indian, Chinese, pizza, Mexican…" Lena passed around menus and we all grabbed for what we wanted.

Mariana and I wanted Chinese, Jesus, of course, wanted pizza, Brandon and mama both wanted Indian, and Jude and mom wanted Mexican. We all looked at each other waiting for someone to give in, but no one would budge.

"Well, it looks like we're ordering from everywhere." Stef said with a sigh. "But, _you_ will do the ordering. I don't want to call four separate places for dinner. Make the calls and have it delivered." We all excitedly pulled out our phones and ordered our food. Moms always made us agree on dinner and someone was always upset with the final choice, so it was nice to have everyone happy.

Thirty minutes later the food had arrived and we were all sitting in the living room happily enjoying our food.

"So, what's the occasion?" Brandon said with a mouth full of noodles.

"Hey! Come on dude! Chew, swallow, speak." Stef handed him a napkin with a smirk on her face. "And there really isn't an occasion. Mariana thought it would be nice if we had family night. We haven't done this since…" Her words trailed off and everyone slowly started to look at me.

"Since I was raped. You can say it! It really isn't going to hurt my feelings." I tried to make my words sound lighthearted, but it didn't work as well as planned. "Sorry, that was kind of rude. What I'm trying to say is, you don't have to tip toe around me."

"Sorry, love. We haven't done this since Callie was attacked. Mama and I miss spending time with our babies!" Stef pulled Jude close and kissed his cheek.

"Ew! Mom you got guacamole on my face!" Jude laughed and wiped it off which caused everyone to bust into giggles.

"So, is there anything you want to talk about?" Lena asked with a curious look on her face. But, something in the way she looked made me think she already knew something.

"Like what?"

"Like anything, Jesus! You can go first my friend!" Lena passed him a stack of napkins to wipe up the grease that was running down his chin.

"Well, uhh… I kinda got voted as team captain for wrestling and… there is a scout coming to the next meet and she wants to offer me and full-ride scholarship to UCLA." Jesus' face blushed and he quickly shoved more pizza into his face.

"WHAT?!" Stef and Lena yelled in unison. They jumped off of the couch and all but tackled Jesus off of his chair. They peppered his face with kisses and there was a chorus of 'We're so proud of you!' and 'Congratulations!' coming from everyone.

"Don't get too excited!"

"What do you mean, Jesus? Do you no want to go to UCLA?" Lena squatted down in front of him and surveyed the worried look that had taken Jesus' face captive.

"No, it's not that. I would love to go there. It's been my dream since I was little. But… I'd never be able to keep up with the school work. I'm barely passing my sophomore year." His face blushed again and he dropped his head.

"A lot of schools that offer athletes scholarships often provide them with tutors to help them keep up with their studies." Brandon quickly commented.

"Wait, really?" A glimmer of hope shined in Jesus' eyes.

"Really! They would even send someone down here to help you get through high school. Big universities are really supportive of their future and current athletes. So, don't give up on them just yet." Brandon smiled at Jesus.

Jesus smiled back and again shoved another slice into his mouth.

Moms quickly got everyone talking about what was going on in their lives. Some of it was good, and some was bad. We all talked for several hours before Stef and Lena gave each other an obvious look.

"Well, we're really happy that you all finally got the chance to talk to us. And we want to apologize for not being very present lately. There's just been a lot going on lately with Callie's attack and the trial. We never meant to neglect your feelings. We hope you can forgive us." Stef looked around to my siblings and waited with an eager and equally terrified look on her face.

My brothers and sister looked around at each other and shared a smile.

"We aren't mad. Not at all. We know that you've had to be with Callie more than us and that's okay." Jude smiled and gave moms the sweetest look.

"But it has been nice not having you looking over our shoulders all of the time!" Brandon joked.

"Hey, you watch it!" Lena pushed Brandon playfully. "Well, mom and I have some news too. We got a call from Marie today."

Again, I could feel everyone's eyes on me. I cleared my throat and tried to sound confident when I spoke. "What did she say?" I could feel my chest getting tighter and tears were starting to form in my eyes.

Stef and Lena looked at each other for a while before Lena spoke. "We're so sorry Callie…"

"Because you're going to be stuck with us forever now!" Stef quickly turned the tables on us when she cut Lena off.

"Wait! Are you saying… are you seriously saying that I'm going to be… adopted?" Tears were pouring out of my eyes.

"In two weeks from today!" Stef squealed. Both of my moms leaped off the couch a squeezed me into a mama sandwich.

I caught a glimpse of Jude and he was in the middle of a sibling sandwich with tears streaming down his cheeks. After we were finally freed from the grips of our family, I pulled my not-so-little brother into a tight hug.

"It's finally happening Callie! You're getting adopted!" Jude pulled back from the hug and wiped the tears that were still coming down my face.

 **Stef's POV**

After the celebrating died down, the kids picked out some movies and we all sat around the living room eating popcorn and laughing at the films. At the end of the third movie, I looked around and smiled at the sight before me. Brandon was sleeping on the floor, drooling, with Jude cuddled up next to him. Mariana and Jesus were passed out on the loveseat with a blanket draped across them. Every now and then one of them would shove the other to get more room. Callie was asleep on the couch with her head in my lap. She had her thumb resting against her lips while she rubbed her nose with her index finger. I turned and grabbed Lena's hand, who was sitting in the rocking chair. She smiled at me and kissed my hand.

"Should we make them move up to their beds?"

I thought for a minute. "No, let them stay here. We probably won't get a night this good for a long time. Let's let it last for as long as possible."

"Good idea. I take it we're staying too?"

"I am, but go to bed if you're uncomfortable. I don't want you to be sore in the morning.

Lena smiled as she got up and laid a blanket across Callie and tucked it in around my legs. "You aren't getting rid of me that easily. Goodnight, my love. I love you."

"I love you more."

Lena leaned in and kissed me gently. In that moment, we were all so happy and so complete. I'd never loved my family more.

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Did you like the little curveball I threw in with Callie's adoption? Also, I hope the scene with Jesus talking about getting team captain didn't confuse you. I had to make it seem like Lena didn't already know about it since Mariana had told her earlier. Sorry if that was confusing! Anyway, leave me some reviews! The story is coming to a close! What would you like to see happen in the last chapter?**


	16. Chapter 16

**Callie's POV**

 _Today's the day._

I woke up with that thought broadcasting through my mind. I couldn't keep myself from smiling like an idiot. It felt like it was Christmas, my birthday, and the first day of summer all rolled into one day. I climbed out of bed and noticed that Mariana wasn't in bed, which was weird because it wasn't in the middle of the afternoon.

After getting ready, I checked the boys' rooms and found them empty as well as my moms' room. I was beginning to get very worried/confused. But, I laughed at myself for having such a ridiculous thought. What, did a kidnapper come in and take everyone _except_ me?

I walked down the stairs and pulled out my phone to text Brandon when I heard a noise in the kitchen. The hair on the back of my neck stood up and my palms started to sweat. Regardless, I walked towards the sound like the dumb girls in horror movies. I slowly crept around the corner and nearly fainted when I reached the kitchen.

"Surprise!" My siblings and moms jumped up from behind the island and threw confetti and released balloons into the room.

"Happy adoption day!" Lena came running to me with open arms and pulled me into a tight hug. Stef wasn't far behind and smothered me with kisses.

"Callie, close your mouth otherwise a fly is going to take up residence!" Stef pushed my jaw shut. I guess I was still in shock from the surprise.

"You didn't have to do this!" I hugged my moms back and smiled widely at my brothers and sister.

"Well, I guess we could throw the biscuits and gravy away and everyone could just eat toast for breakfast…" Lena teased.

"Hey, there is no need to go to extremes here!" I smiled. I breathed in deep and smelled the smell the brought back so many memories.

"I helped moms make it the way mom used to." Jude crossed the kitchen and hugged me. "I just wanted you to know that she is with you today." He whispered to me. "I know this is what she would have wanted for us."

"Alright everyone gather around before this delicious feast gets cold!" Stef ushered us all to our seats and started serving the biscuits and then passed around the crock that held the gravy. I took a bite and instantly broke into tears.

"Callie, what's wrong love?" Stef rubbed my back and wiped a tear from my face.

"No, I'm fine! These are happy tears!" I smiled and tried to reassure her, but the looks I received from everyone told me that I wasn't very convincing. I sighed and explained. "This tastes _exactly_ how my mom… my birth mom… used to make it." I locked eyes with Jude and continued. "She would make it for us every Sunday morning."

"And then we would go on a walk to the park and pick flowers on the way. We always had a fresh bouquet on the table." Jude smiled back.

I looked around the table and was met with smiles and teary-eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you sad."

"These are happy tears, love. Happy tears." Stef squeezed my hand and kissed my cheek.

We all laughed and ate for about an hour before Lena ordered us upstairs to get ready for court. As I was walking upstairs, Stef and Lena pulled me aside.

"Can we talk to you for a minute, love?" Stef asked but I knew it wasn't really a question.

"Uh, yeah. Is everything okay with the adoption? It didn't get cancelled did it?" Worry filled my stomach and my palms started to sweat again.

"No, nothing like that. We just wanted to talk about something." Lena explained.

"We want you to know that you don't have to call your mom your birth mom. She will always be your mom first."

"But, you're going to be my moms. She's… she's dead. She can't be my mom."

"No, your mom can't _mother_ you. Just because she's gone doesn't mean she can't still be your mom." Stef smiled weakly at me.

"Does this mean I can't call you my moms?"

"Of course not." Lena sighed as she tried to explain. "Think of it like this: you have _three_ moms. Sure, only two of us are here. But, that doesn't make us any more your moms than the woman who gave birth to you and Jude. Do you understand, love?"

I smiled. "I do. I'm going to go get ready now." I walked to the stairs but turned around. "I love you."

"We love you more!" Stef smiled and ushered me upstairs.

 **Two hours later**

 **Stef's POV**

The closer we got to the courthouse, the more nervous I got. The last time we did this Callie's adoption was denied because we found out about Robert. I couldn't help but think that something was going to go wrong again. I looked over at Lena and could tell that she felt it too.

We arrived with Brandon right behind us. He and the twins parked the Volvo and met myself, Lena, Jude, and Callie in the lobby of the courthouse. We all sat in the waiting area and a strong case a déjá

vu washed over me as Marie walked up to us.

"Hey, can I talk to you real quick?" She pulled Lena and me aside and had that same worried look on her face as nine months ago when we adopted Jude.

"If you are going to tell us that there is another problem, please don't. Just pretend like you forgot and lose the file. Whatever you have to do. Please, just let us adopt our daughter." I begged with her. I couldn't imagine telling Callie that we couldn't adopt her _again_ because of some unknown factor.

"This isn't bad news. This is an apology. I should have done more digging before I approved Jude and Callie's adoption nine months ago. I should have never gotten your hopes up and then crushed them on what should have been one of the happiest days of your lives. I screwed up, and I needed to apologize."

"Marie, we don't blame you for Callie's adoption not going through. Don't beat yourself up. You got us here today! Today is thanks to you!" Lena hugged Marie.

"I'm not getting adopted am I?" Callie's voice came from behind me. I spun around and was met with a scared little girl.

"You _are_ getting adopted today Callie. There is nothing to worry about. Let's go sit down, shall we?"

She nodded, but before we could make it back to our seats the bailiff came out of the courtroom.

"Adoption hearing for Callie Jacob."

We all froze in our places but smiles slowly crept onto our faces. We made our way into the courtroom and were met with a crowded room and applause.

"Who are these kids?" Mariana asked me.

"Their foster kids. They wrote messages on Callie's Fost&Found app saying that they wanted to come and support her." Jude explained from the middle of the group.

I looked over at Callie and she had tears in her eyes.

"I never expected this. I didn't even know that kids were using my app." She wiped the tears away quickly and smiled at everyone as we made our way to our seats.

Judge Ringer took his seat and banged his gavel on the sound block. "Order in the court, please!" The applause ceased and everyone sat down. "We are here on this day for an adoption hearing for Callie Jacob. Ms. Jacob, will you stand please?"

Callie stood and straightened her dress.

"It says here, in your file, that your adoption was not recommended a few weeks ago because of an investigation of your foster brother, Brandon Foster. The adoption wasn't recommended because a restraining order was taken out against him because apparently the two of you were involved in a relationship. Is this true?"

"Yes, Your Honor." Callie fidgeted with her hands and started picking at her nails.

"And I trust that since you are in my courtroom today, there is nothing romantic going on between the two of you anymore." Judge Ringer looked annoyed that he had to be explaining this to Callie.

As we waited for Callie to answer, my heart began to sink. Were they still seeing each other? Was Callie going to ruin having a family for him?

"Ms. Jacob, I'm going to need an answer, otherwise this hearing was pointless."

 **Callie's POV**

"I'm sorry, Your Honor. No, there is nothing going on between Brandon and me. The relationship was a mistake from the start. It should never have happened." I could feel Brandon's eyes burning into my back as I spoke. I hated to hurt him but, I truly meant those words.

"Well, I'm happy to hear you say that. I see no reason to push this off anymore. Callie, you've been on a hard road for the last seven years. Seven different foster homes with their own difficulties, juvenile detention, which in my opinion was a mistake… you should never have been sent there. And then nearly aging out of the system. I hate that you had to go through so many troubling things to get to this point, but none the less, here we are. Callie Quinn Jacob, I am hereby approving your adoption to Stefanie Marie Adams-Foster and Lena Elizabeth Adams-Foster. Congratulations, Callie! You are _officially_ a member of the Adams-Foster family!"

Once again, the courtroom burst into applause. Stef and Lena pulled me into a hug and smothered me with kisses. I finally got myself away from them for a minute so I could hug Jude.

"It's official Callie! We're both _finally_ adopted!" He hugged me tightly and cried as he spoke. "Did you ever think this day would come?"

"I knew the moment they brought us back from the Harland's that they would be our forever family. I just had a gut feeling, you know?"

Jude smiled and hugged me again but turned away from me to go talk to Connor.

I turned around expecting to be pulled into more hugs, but Brandon was standing right in front of me. "Hey, Brandon. Uh, listen…" I tried to explain.

"Don't. Please, just don't. Just tell me this: Did you really mean what you said? That we shouldn't have ever been together? Do you really feel that way?" Tears were forming in his eyes.

I nodded. "I'm sorry Brandon. I shouldn't have kissed you at the wedding and we shouldn't have ever let it go as far as it did. But please don't think that I don't love you because I do. You are my big brother and I love you so much. But that is the only way I can ever love you."

I was shocked when he pulled me into a tight hug. "Thank you… for saying that. I need to hear it. Now I know that it's really over. And I love you too… _sis_." He pulled back and smiled at me.

Seconds later Mariana was pulling me away rambling on about something that I wasn't really paying attention to. I smiled and nodded along but I didn't really understand what she was saying. I was trying to pay attention to Jude and Connor. They were off in the corner having what looked like a really important conversation.

 **Jude's POV**

After celebrating quickly with Callie, I had to go talk to Connor. I grabbed his hand and pulled him off to a secluded corner.

"Jude, what are you doing? You should be in there celebrating with your family." Connor had a withdrawn expression on his face.

"I have plenty of time to do that later. I need to talk to you right now. Listen, I was being selfish when you told me you are moving to LA to live with your mom. I should have been supporting you instead of wanting to keep you somewhere you weren't happy. After seeing Callie smile when she knew she _officially_ had a family, I knew that I wanted that for you. If your dad can't accept you for who you are, you shouldn't be living with him. I mean, we can skype and I can ride the train to LA and you can ride it here. But, if you think it's going to be too hard to have a long distance relationship, I understand. I just want you to be happy." I squeezed his hands tightly and smiled weakly at him.

"Do you really think I would be happier if I wasn't dating you? Do you really think that I am going to find a boy more attractive, funnier, or an all-around better person than you in LA? Jude, you are the person I want to be with. Not just through the easy stuff. I want you through it all: good, bad, and ugly. And while we were in that courtroom, I wasn't seeing what you were seeing. I saw my future sister-in-law getting adopted. And I saw us signing the documents to officially adopt our children. LA is just a temporary set-back. I will come back to San Diego for you, Jude. We are made for each other Jude Adams-Foster. And… I love you." Connor let tears fall down his face as he spoke. He didn't even attempt to stop them.

I was smiling like an idiot from ear to ear. My heart was swelling with happiness and hot tears started falling down my face. "I love you too, Connor." I pulled him close and planted a big kiss on his lips. I pushed him back and looked into his hazel eyes. "Do you really want to have children with me?"

"All kinds of kids! We'll have biological, adopted, and foster! And they will be so loved by two dads who would do anything for them. Damn… I just want to grow up so I can marry you already."

I knew then how madly in love I was with that boy. I pulled him to me again and kissed him passionately.

"Alright you two love-birds!" Stef walked over to us holding Lena's hand. "We are going to get dinner to celebrate. Connor, you will be joining us, won't you?"

He turned and looked at me with an uncertain look on his face. I squeezed his hand to reassure him. "I would love too. Thanks Stef."

We all walked out of the courthouse and piled into the two cars. Moms, Callie, Connor, and I got in the SUV and Brandon took the twins in the Volvo. We had decided on a fancy restaurant downtown, but mom took an unexpected turn.

"Uh, mom, where are we going? This isn't the way to the restaurant." Callie questioned.

"Don't worry about it, love. This is just a little detour." Stef kept driving, leaving everyone but Lena confused.

After about ten minutes Lena turned around and smiled devilishly at us. "Okay, Callie and Jude close your eyes. Connor, you make sure they don't peak." She turned around without another word but shared a smile with Stef.

Connor looked back and forth between me and Callie and then covered our eyes with his hands.

"This is getting kind of creepy moms!"

"Just go with it Jude!" Stef called from the driver's seat.

Five minutes later the car came to a stop, but Connor didn't move his hands. Stef and Lena got out and opened our doors. Lena came to me and replaced Connor's hand with her own and I'm guessing Stef did the same to Callie. I took in a deep breath and tried to identify my surroundings. There were no car sounds so I guessed we were somewhere out of the city. I heard Brandon, Mariana, Jesus, and Connor's voices fade as moms led Callie and me up a hill.

"We understand that you are probably very confused about what is happening right now, but we felt like this needed to be done." Stef said with excitement in her voice.

I felt Callie search for my hand and I gripped hers tightly.

"Okay, 1… 2… 3!" Lena counted down and they pulled their hands away from our faces. It took a while for my eyes to adjust, but I immediately started to cry when I saw what was in front of me.

"We thought you would want to be with her on the day you were both finally adopted. We wanted to do this on the day Jude was adopted, but we thought it would be more special when Callie's adoption was final. We'll give you some time to be with her." Stef kissed each of us and then walked with Lena down to the cars.

Callie dropped to the ground and started to cry. "I'm sorry we haven't visited you in a long time. It's been hard since we don't live very close. Sorry… that isn't a good excuse."

"We miss you so much. We'll be out as much as we can once Callie gets her license. And we'll bring flowers too." I sat down next to Callie and brushed some dirt and leaves off of our mom's gravestone.

Callie wiped her tears and continued to talk to our mom with a big smile on her face. "I got adopted today mom. Jude was adopted a while ago but I couldn't because we didn't know about Robert. But, that all got straightened out. I want you to know that we have two moms who love us very much. They are good to us. They don't hurt us and they truly care about what is happening with us and our siblings." She rubbed the gold coin on her necklace as she spoke.

"We have two brothers, Brandon and Jesus, and a sister, Mariana. They're really great too."

I sat there with my sister talking to our mom for about 45 minutes. We cried and laughed as we recalled memories from our days with her. It started to rain and we knew it was time to say goodbye.

"I'm going to save up my money from work and buy you a really beautiful headstone, mom." Callie wiped the remaining dirt away from the little stone in the ground. We didn't have any money to buy her a nice stone when she died so we just got what the state paid for.

"And we're really sorry that we couldn't come to your… funeral." I had to choke those words out. "We were in a really bad home and they wouldn't take us." The rain was coming down really hard now.

"We have to go mom. But we'll be back soon to talk." Callie leaned down and kissed the headstone and I did the same. We stood and hugged each other tightly. The rain came down even heavier and we slowly made our way to our family. Our moms handed us towels and blankets to dry off with and drove off to the restaurant. I rested my head on Connor's shoulder and felt him kiss my temple.

 **Callie's POV**

We finally got to the restaurant and took our seats at the reserved table. Everyone was laughing and telling funny stories all night. I looked around the table and felt so much love for everyone. They were all so special to me in their own individual ways.

Even though it took me what felt like a lifetime to warm up to them and trust them, I wouldn't trade any of it for the world. They all changed me in so many ways and helped me grow into a better person. For once, I didn't look at these people and see foster siblings and foster moms. I didn't see the chance to be taken from them without a moment's notice. I didn't see pain, or abusive foster families, or anything bad. I saw all of these people who truly loved me. I saw hope and a future that wasn't filled with uncertainty. But, most importantly, I saw my family: my two beautiful mothers, my goofy brothers, my drop-dead gorgeous sister, and the boy who made my baby brother so incredibly happy.

That night, I didn't walk into my foster house. I walked into _my_ home. All of those houses that still caused me nightmares were behind me. Abusive foster fathers, drunk foster moms, and creepy foster siblings were no more. I was safe, happy, and loved.

 **Well, that's it! Sorry for the kind of abrupt ending, but I couldn't really think of a good way to end it. I really hope you all enjoyed this story! I still need some ideas for more stories so don't forget to pm me or leave an idea in a review!**


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